French artist Jean-Louis Gonzal says his friend JC Sheitan Tenet lost only an arm and nothing else. That is to say, losing his right arm at the age of ten hasn't stopped now 32-year-old Tenet from pursuing what might seem impossible: becoming a "cyborg tattoo artist".Motherboard talked to Tenet earlier this year. But now he's back with a new video.In this video by Great Big Story, Tenet recounts his eight years as a tattoo artist, having taught himself how to tattoo. Then he met Gonzal at a tattoo convention. Gonzal describes his work as biomechanical, mixing human and machine. Tenet got the idea that he wanted to tattoo with his own prosthetic arm.The solution? Attach a tattoo gun to the prosthetic. Gonzal helped him design a machine that attaches to Tenet's arm stump, which allows him to be a tattoo artist. It can pivot 360 degrees, and helps him with colors, stylistic methods, and abstract functions.Not only did the machine have to be functional, but also aesthetically stylish, Gonzal said. The machine includes parts from an old mechanical typewriter and gramophone, giving it a "steampunk look." It's painted with a rusty finish.
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As a successful "cyborg tattoo artist," Tenet proves that transhumanism may just be the way of the future.Get six of our favorite Motherboard stories every day by signing up for our newsletter.Read more: This Badass Prosthetic Arm Doubles As a Tattoo Machine