Legendary Tattoo Masters: Kat Von D
A talented most famous for her role on and LA , there is much more to Kat Von D than just a TV show.
In our current world of reality TV, a to superstardom and celebrity. influencers and viral videos fame is within reach of everyone, from video game bloggers to artists. One of the most famous and successful of these is Kat Von D, who went from inking cool body art in
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Kat ‘s career outside includes fame as a , authoring several books, singing on a number of rock and roll tracks and launching a successful –and controversial— . A savvy entrepreneur and skilled , Kat continues to blaze a trail for powerful and unapologetic women in the industry.
An Early Start
Born in Mexico but moving to her at age 14 and quitting school two years later to pursue her career as a . Cutting her teeth in LA and , was influenced by her Latino heritage and punk rock, finding connections in these cultural movements with deep roots in Southern California. with her family at four years old, Kat began came to at an early age, getting
The nation got their first real look at Kat as a when joined the crew, filling in for another injured . After two seasons Kat left Miami due to creative differences and returned to her home of where she eventually landed her own show, La . on the
In 2007 Kat set the Guinness World Record for the most applied in 24 hours—400—cementing her place in the world of fame. She also features on numerous covers of bible .
Kat ‘s and Work
Growing up in Los Angles in the 1990’s and having a Latino background, it is unsurprising that many of —both the she wears and the she creates in the —draw heavily on the Chicano tradition. Known for clean black and gray work with an emphasis on smooth shading and striking portraits, Kat takes this classic style and puts her own spin on it.
Like many artists, Kat has . Some of her largest and most prominent pieces speak to her upbringing in . She sports a number of black and gray portraits that are typical of the Chicano style as well as a half of excellent black and gray roses. Across her shoulders she has the Chicano adage “Mi Vida Loca” in elaborate cursive script, a commemoration to the wild times in her crazy life.
Another bad ass piece is the into a triangle surrounded entirely by . on her left forearm – a type of where the entire piece is filled in with . It covers most of her forearm and pevious work but isolates other previous
She told Instagram when revealing the : “I’m so in love with my new blacked out arm tattooed by @hoode215! Can’t believe it only took him 1.5 hours – and it’s the most consistent, true black I have ever seen!”
As is the case for many a Kat was lauded by some for the but also blasted by others, with the nicest insult calling the a . showing off their tattoos on ,
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A-List Tattoo Resume
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The excellent quality of her . Once again, her clean line work and precise shading are at the center of her work and many celebs have chosen Kat to apply her trademark style to their bodies. Her love affair with music is no secret which has prompted many musicians to seek her out because of the connection they share. work did not escape the attention of celebrities – being talented and being a in LA has it’s benefits! Kat has one of the most studded resumes of any contemporary
Before Lady Gaga was a household name, she came to Kat to get some . While the soon-to-be had high hopes Kat wasn’t so sure. “’What are you all about, your music and stuff?’ And she goes ‘I’m here to make it huge. I’m going to make it big.’ She’d just moved to LA and I was like, ‘Yeah, yeah, you and everyone else.’ I didn’t say that, but cool, whatever happens. I swear, like three days later her face was everywhere. But man, she did it. It was really cool to see that.’”
Besides Gaga, Kat has tattooed departed rock legend Lemmy, super Kat ‘s Wonderland or in . rapper Lil’ Wayne, Slim Shady himself, Eminem, Red Hot Chili Peppers Dave Navarro and Anthony Keidis, Miley Cyrus, and R&B royalty Mary J. Blige. It seems like everyone that is anyone in the music business has sat in Kat’s chair for their at either
Bestselling Tattoo Author
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Along the wild ride that was Kat Von D’s journey into the public eye and eventual position as a mogul, she released two books documenting her life in the . High Voltage was released in 2006, and featuring a forward from her first book reached number 6 on The New York Times’ Best Seller List. In a 2009 she described the book as “not an autobiography, you know, ’cause I’m too young to do that. But this is just kind of like a picture-driven outline of my career as an .”
Her second book, 2010’s Chronicles, was an illustrated journal accounting a year in her life which reached number three on The New York Times’ “Hardcover Advice & Misc” bestseller’s list.
The Birth of a
It was from this position of celebrity the Kat for Sephora brush set. The kit featured lipstick, , eyeshadow, and a custom brush set. that Kat launched the first of many business ventures breaking the bounds of , with a focus on and . In 2008 Kat started what would become a 12 year relationship with company, Sephora, with the launch of
Her own personal style, with sharp, cat bright , caught the eye of many in the world of fashion and her dedication to her precise appearance drew many admirers and helped to launch her . wings and
Fans of her tattoos also gravitated to her thanks to the way she “painstakingly micro-managed” every element in the process of bringing her product to the marketplace. In fact, according to an interview there are direct connections between her first artistic passion and her process for designing and marketing her : “I treat it like a , taking into consideration the muscle structure and seeing where the line lands on the existing body.”
A Plant Based Revolution
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In 2011 the documentary Forks Over Knives was released to both acclaim and criticism. Advocating for a whole-food, plant based diet, Forks Over Knives was a powerful tool for informing the world of the benefits of a diet, and Kat was one of millions who became a of the film’s message and drastically changed their lives thanks to the documentary.
Shortly after she saw the film Kat transitioned to a fully diet, but for Kat, the change went beyond food. Her participation in the industry—notorious among animal rights advocates—brought the reality of using animal based ingredients in her front and center, and Kat couldn’t stand idle.
In 2016, after more than a year of working tirelessly with Kendo Brands (the business incubator that created Sephora), the Kat Von D was reformulated to be 100% .
Since her transition to a plant based, lifestyle, Kat has continued to incorporate her world view into other business ventures. On International Day in November of 2019, Kat unveiled her own brand of footwear, Shoes. Completely animal free, the two styles on offer—the Slayer boot and witchy, Coven I—both sold out within minutes, hinting that Kat may have been on to something with her animal friendly footwear.
Controversy and Kat
Artists are not known for conforming to society’s norms and restrictions, and, unsurprisingly, Kat is no stranger to controversy.
One black cloud that has continued to follow Kat around are accusations of anti-Semitism stemming from her relationship with bad boy motorcycle builder Jesse James.
While she denied knowledge of his unsavory interests – which included collecting Nazi paraphernalia – further accusations followed the release of a lipstick color named “Selektion” a term that has direct ties to the Holocaust and the selection of those that would work and those that would be executed. Kat has caught flack for other names, including “Underage Red” lipstick and a “promotion for he”Lock-it” concealer that featured a dark skinned hand holding the product in front of a cotton field.
Moving Forward
In January, Kat used her Instagram account, to inform the world that she would be walking away from the KVD venture and selling all of her controlling stock to Kendo.
Kendo have rebranded the as , and while they maintain Kat’s dedication to an animal free product they will be changing some things, notably the name. “It does NOT stand for a person’s initials,” the brand said via Instagram. “ represents our ethos and new manifesto. We believe in Kindness, + Discovery (and Doing good)”. This, along with a dedication to environmental responsibility, falls right in line with Kat’s values and beliefs.
While some fans may be dismayed by this change, Kat assured her followers that she is moving on in order to focus on her other projects, and remain active with the tattoo gun.
“This past year has been one of great change for me. As many of you know, I gave birth to my beautiful baby boy, launched my shoe line, and am now busy prepping to release my long awaited album in the Spring, followed by an international tour!”
Kat has been an inspiration for woman around the world to follow their dreams and stay true to themselves, showing women that even in the traditionally male dominated , hard work and determination pay off.