Page 56 - AVN September 2017

FEATURE
“I WANTED A BAD-ASS
PORN TATTOO JUST
TO SHOW THE WORLD
WHAT I’M DOING.”
—JOANNA ANGEL, FOUNDER,
BURNINGANGEL
FEATURE | By Dan Miller
— Porn stars go beyond skin deep and reveal the tales behind their tattoos —
When Joanna Angel married Small Hands in an unconventional
ceremony on Halloween last year, she wanted to mark the occasion.
So the self-styled punk-rock princess and her husband got
matching tattoos.
“The most meaningful tattoo I have is the Grim Reaper on my
right leg with the date of my wedding on it—10-31-16,” Angel says.
“Me and my husband were married by the Grim Reaper on that day.
“I got the face and the sickle and [Small Hands] didn’t have
enough space, so he got the sickle with the date near his shoulder.”
The AVN Hall of Fame performer/director, who founded
BurningAngel Entertainment, is a pioneer in the ever-growing
legion of adult stars sporting body art that is as integral to their
porn personas as their hardcore sex scenes.
Whether they’re AVN Award-winning legends in the making or
promising industry newcomers, their tattoos tell stories that their
performances cannot, bringing deeper meaning to their lives often
in ways only they understand.
For our September cover story, an eclectic mix of current
female performers revealed which of their tattoos carry the most
significance, the hidden messages behind them and what inspired
them to get the ink.
Without question one of the porn community’s most famous
tattoos belongs to 2016 AVN Female Performer of the Year Riley
Reid, whose Kanji symbols—a system of Japanese writing that uses
Chinese characters—on her spine are rooted in her approach to life.
“My tattoo is not an exact translation but the concept of it is,
‘When life hands you lemons, make lemonade,’” Reid tells AVN.
“When I was in my senior year of high school I was doing a lot of
self seeking and I was really learning more about opening my mind
and the fluidness of love—in the sense of it being so communal.
“I had gotten my first tattoo on my right shoulder at 18, a design
I drew up that I imaged from a music note. It’s a heart—with a
dying yang inside the heart—and then a peace sign falling from the
heart. It was my expression of co-existing and love. After my first
tattoo I already knew I wanted another one, I just wasn’t sure yet.”
Reid continues, “I had always been an optimist. I suppose it was a side effect of growing up in
a struggling home. My mother has depression and I have seen her deal with inner battles since I
was a child. I think it was since then that I realized I always wanted to have a better outlook on
life and to not dwell on the sad. It’s funny because I know that being optimistic is just kind of
blinding oneself to suffering, but who really wants to feel suffering?
“Personally, I’d rather make lemonade.”
Katrina Jade has never been a follower, whether it was before she stormed into adult
entertainment in 2014 or now that she is established as the industry’s most notorious “villain.”
The “Slut” tattoo on the right side of Jade’s ass and the spider web on her right temple convey
the kind of unapologetic attitude that has translated into porno must-see TV.
“I’m a really compulsive person,” Jade admits. “I never really planned out any of my tattoos.”
One day a little more than three years ago, Jade decided tattooing “Slut” somewhere on her
body was her next move.
“Because it was true,” she says. “Obviously, I like being really out there and showing things off.
“Then the one on my face—both of the ones on my face—my husband [Nigel Dictator] has the
same matching tattoos. The small heart with arrows crossed underneath my husband has on his
forearm.
“We both have spider webs on the same side of our face, but he has it inside of his ear. The
inside of my fingers also match tattoos on my husband’s face as well. … My ‘Daddy’s Girl’ tattoo
was for him. For him it’s a pride in ownership thing. I’ve always called him that. It’s right above
my pussy.”
Jade, who won her first AVN Award in January for Best Group Sex Scene in Jules Jordan Video’s
Orgy Master 8, tied the knot with Nigel, who is an industry photographer, in October 2013 and
they got the web tattoos a few months later.
“I didn’t think that one through. I kind of woke up and said I want to get a face tattoo and I’m
going to get a spider web on my face,” Jade says. “I like the darker goth look.”
“I don’t regret any of them at all,” she adds.
Kleio Valentien, the 2017 AVN Best Actress winner for her role in Axel Braun’s Suicide Squad
XXX for Wicked Comix, has become one of adult’s premier inked beauties.
“One that has a really deep meaning for me is a lotus in water,” Valentien says. “I got it for my
best friend who passed away when I was 13. It’s on my right forearm. The number of petals are
the age when she passed away.
“I got that one around when I was 18. It’s been a while.”
Valentien continues, “I have an anchor with a compass and I got that for my significant other
56 | AVN.com | 9.17