‘Woman Vampire’ Makes Special Appearance

Caracas, Feb 2 (TAG) – Hundreds of artists showcasing their skills that included under-skin implants and piercings saw that tattoos has been being taken to a whole new level during the Venezuelan Expo Tattoo event held over the weekend.

But, tt was the event's special guest Maria Hose Cristerna, also dubbed as the ‘Vampire Woman’, who grabbed the spotlight at the second annual exhibition event held in the capital city of Caracas, Huffington Post reported.

The 35-year-old is herself a work of art, with almost 100 percent of her body covered in tattoos. She also has prosthetic fangs, fluorescent eyes and titanium horn implants in her forehead.

According to previous interviews, the mother of four and former lawyer took to body art as a form of self-expression after suffering years of domestic abuse from a previous marriage.

"The horns I have are a symbol of strength and were implanted without anesthetic. I had the fangs done because I loved vampires as a little girl and I changed the color of my eyes so they were how I really wanted them to be," Maria said in an interview with The Sun published April 2011.

Last September, Ripley's Believe It or Not! took full-body casts of Maria to produce wax figures of her likeness for display at museums around the world -- bringing her one step closer to immortality.

The three days expo that ended Sunday, also saw many tattoo enthusiasts taking their body art to the extreme, with some hooked to pulley suspensions through clasps in their chests.

According to AFP, more than 200 tattoo artists from a dozen countries attended the event, but Maria's titanium horns, dental "fangs" and numerous facial piercings drew particular attention, even among other tattoo aficionados.

"My body transformation has been a part of taking my taste to the extreme," Maria as quoted said. "Life is short and sometimes we waste it on many things, so I've chosen beauty. And for me it's beautiful to be this way, so that's why I do it."[Photos from YAHOONEWS]