Recently in Art Category

Over the years I have had the opportunity to talk to an eclectic mix of pop icons, and I'd like to share some of my archives with you.  Last summer I spoke with the lovable Kat Von D just before she TV show debuted and her life changed forever!  I think you will find her as vulnerable and talented as I did.  Besides, she has a rocking name! (We're both named after our grandmothers)  Enjoy! Kat Galvan

"I kind of feel like L.A. is this positive new beginning and so I've got a lot bigger fish to fry."  Over 3,000,000 fans watched as the sultry artist walked out of the Miami Ink line up and into uncertainty without looking back, leaving those tension filled relationships behind.  "I no longer talk to them.  At the same time it's a really sad time when I decided to leave Miami, but I definitely learned some important life lessons that I feel will help me with the new show.  I'm 25 years old.  This is the first business I've owned.  Having people work for me is scary, so being able to learn what are some good things and bad decisions that people made on the other show..." (she pauses contemplatively) "hopefully I can learn from that and take it to the next level."

It is a bittersweet fresh start for Kat Von D as the self -proclaimed "L.A. Woman" returns home, having learned from the best.  Her new shop, High Voltage in West Hollywood will have a definite rock and roll flair that reflects her own lifestyle highlighted in the new show L.A. Ink. "It's going to be all women and just one guy, so it's going to be like Miami Ink, but flipped.  For me the important part was just to get the best of the best.  I didn't really care where they were from."

Being in the position to choose from the cream of the crop, Kat handpicked the artists who would have the honor of working with her.  "It wasn't so much about people asking me as about the people that I asked.  When it comes to L.A. Ink I didn't want to sacrifice any integrity. I want to show tattooing in a very good light and there are a lot of nice facets of tattooing that people have not heard of yet, like different cultures.  In some cultures tattooing has so much history.  I wanted to showcase artists from all over the world.  You'll see styles that you never even thought were possible.  At the same time this is Los Angeles and we have a lot more resources than I feel we had in Miami, such as music and art, different cultures, the weather, we have the ocean, the city, the desert, the mountains, San Francisco, Vegas, Mexico all within driving distance.  When you get stuff like that going on you have more diversity and with art I think you should be diverse. Los Angeles has a lot to offer."

Another thing that L.A. has to offer is a never-ending string of celebrity clients like Steve-O and Bam Margera, among others.  "I have a pretty large roster of musician clientelle. I think among all of us in the shop it should be interesting to see some of them actually get tattooed on the show. It’s a window into their life."

Katherine Von Drachenberg aka Kat Von D was born into a bohemian family of artists and musicians who nurtured her creative instincts and inspired her to pursue her dreams, no matter how unconventional. "I come from a very artistic family.  My grandmothers on both sides are artists.  My grandmother on my dad's side has been a major influence. She was a famous pianist in Germany back in the day and she taught me how to play the piano since I was six and I still play today.  She's also an oil painter I feel like a little of her talent trickled down to me in a different medium." But don't expect to we see Kat Von D performing on stage any time soon.  "I'm classically trained so it's really hard for me to write music, which really sucks!  Learning a skill is one thing, but being born with a talent is a gift.  You can't learn that, so I leave the music to the professionals!"

Her exotic family tree actually has roots in the Inland Empire. "My family is from Argentina.  My mother is of Spanish Italian decent.  My father is German. They were missionaries for the church and we moved to Mexico where my brother, my sister and I were born.  When I was four we came to southern California to Colton.  I usually say San Bernardino because nobody knows where Colton is!"

Although she excelled in school, however, the traditional route was not for her. "Elementary school was my favorite.  School was always easy. I was 'gifted and talented' They were always trying to skip me in grades.  I liked the scholastic aspects of it.  It was the social part I wasn’t really into. So I started tattooing at the age of 14.  I think I was a week or so into my freshman year when I decided to pursue tattooing and by the time I was 16 I was professionally tattooing in the studio.  I've never advocated dropping out of school or anything like that.  It was one of those things that was a really hard road to take. But I'm really glad I did because I feel like I can help people and I can use tattooing as that tool to do so."

"Artistic people, musicians, we're all these hopeless romantics! It's really hard to pay attention to Algebra!  But at the same i't's really important to stay focused and make it happen.  I really missed out on a lot during my childhood because of it, but at the same time growing up too fast wasn't such a bad thing in my book. If I had a kid, I would probably want them to stay in school and draw, but chose another route. I feel like as much as I love tattooing, it's something that if you're born to do it, you’re gonna do it.  But it's definitely the school of hard knocks.  A lot of the elements of tattooing are still very old school, anti-women, and it's pretty hard to constantly be trying to prove yourself.  In the end, if you’re a success you really do things for the right reasons and it shows in your work."

Her advice to aspiring tattoo artists is that drawing on paper is nothing like working on a human body.  "It's Mars and Earth!  Some people are really artistically inclined when it comes to paper. Tattooing is a different medium.  You're dealing with a surface that moves and breaths and sweats and has a different skin type and has a fantasy in the head that you're trying to fulfill and there's a lot of pressure, and then keeping in mind that there's a healing process, too, so it's pretty tough."

Kat's smoking, sexy persona disguises a child-like innocence that allows her clients to open their souls to her, almost like a therapist.  "I think the connection the client has with the artist is almost as important as the actual skill because if you’re not on the same page with the artist it's going to be really hard to understand you, spending hours with somebody…people that are getting tattooed are usually getting something that really means something to them, whether it's celebrating a wedding, the birth of a child, the death of a loved one or just getting the face of a hero, things that are really important and they've chosen you to be a part of their life.  You have to be a pretty cold person to not really get involved. As far as being a therapist, I can see the elements like a bar tender, I''ve made my best friends through this job and I feel like I'll continue to do so.  I'm just trying to do the best I can."

With all the acclaim, however, is it still possible for the average Joe to get inked by the first lady of tattoo art? "For sure! I don't want people to think I'm unattainable!"

By Kat Galvan

Kat at a glance

Kat is married to tattoo artist Oliver Peck. [Since this interview, Kat has divorced Oliver Peck and is currently dating Nikki Sixx of Motley Crue and Sixx A.M.]

Favorite musician - Ludwig von Beethoven ("I have a slight obsession.")

Favorite band - HIM

Favorite food - "Mexican food that was cooked by Mexicans in Mexico."

Favorite drink - Tequila

Pets - Ludwig, a hairless Sphinx cat that is in love with Steve-O

Moment of Awe - "Dolly Parton recently emailed me!  Her positive energy is really great!"  Kat's mom learned how to speak English by listening to Dolly's music.

Philanthropy - KeepABreast.org