Celebrity tattoo artist and TV personality Kat Von D has given fans a deeply personal update on her evolving relationship with tattoos, marking both a new chapter in her life and a reflection on a difficult few years.
The 43-year-old previously revealed she chose to black out most of her ink in order to have a new start and has shared an update with fans, revealing she is now undergoing tattoo removal, too.
Von D first rose to prominence on LA Ink, the popular TLC reality series that launched in 2007 and chronicled her work at her Los Angeles tattoo shop.
Known for her bold style and celebrity clientele, Kat quickly became one of the most recognizable faces in tattoo culture. But in recent years, she’s made headlines for dramatically changing her own appearance, and outlook.
Back in 2020, Von D revealed she had begun covering many of her older tattoos with solid black ink, a process that took more than 40 hours to complete.
“I think I had been fed up with a lot of the tattoos I got over the years for a long time,” she told Inked Magazine at the time. “I thought I would just black out an arm, but shortly after, I knew I would end up tattooing my whole body.”
The shift marked a personal and symbolic cleansing for Von D, but her relationship with ink became even more complicated when she was hit with a lawsuit in 2021.
Photographer Jeff Sedlik accused her of copyright infringement, claiming she had tattooed a version of his 1989 photo of jazz icon Miles Davis on a friend. The New York Times reported that, after a lengthy legal battle, a jury ultimately found in Von D’s favor, clearing her of any wrongdoing, but the toll was significant.
Now, Kat is entering yet another phase: tattoo removal. In a recent Instagram video, she marked her 18th year of sobriety by undergoing laser removal on several tattoos, including a floral neck piece.
“What better way to celebrate [18 years sober] than getting a bunch of tattoos lasered off,” she wrote. Though children’s blunt reactions in the video added levity - including comparing the results to a "car crash", she appeared content with the progress.
Tattoo removal is notoriously painful, something comedian Pete Davidson once compared to “putting your arm on a grill,” per Page Six. For Von D, it seems the discomfort is worth it as she reclaims her body and her narrative.
She also confirmed that, after everything, she no longer wishes to return to tattooing.
“My heart has been crushed in different ways,” she said, referencing the emotional strain of the lawsuit. “As much as I knew [the plaintiff] didn’t deserve a penny, there were times I wanted to settle just to make it stop.”
Ultimately, she stayed the course for the sake of the industry. “I knew if I didn’t fight, the damage to tattoo artists could be immense. I couldn’t live with that.”