Jonathan "JonBoy" Valena was hanging out in Toronto last week to help hype Yorkdale's ever-changing CONCEPT space. JonBoy hosted a bustling two-day pop-up in the 3,600 square-foot environment on July 27 and 28, and he drew a winding line of fans hoping for a free tattoo and the chance to meet the NYC-based celebrity tattoo artist during his first Canadian appearance.
Even if you don’t know his name, you've most definitely seen his intricate work. He's the artist behind the micro tat craze, with a Rolodex of high-profile clients that includes model Hailey Baldwin (she’s been inked by JonBoy several times over the years), Kendall Jenner (her single white dot finger tattoo and "meow" tattoo on her inner lip made headlines around the globe), Bella Hadid (a tiny angel wing ankle tattoo commemorates her Victoria's Secret Angel status), Kylie Jenner (most recently a red ‘M’ on her pinkie finger), Chloë Grace Moretz (a "Janette Duke" tattoo on the under-rib is in honour of her grandmother), Zayn Malik (a glow-in-the-dark lightsabre tattoo on his middle finger) and Justin Bieber (a tiny cross near his left eye).
Ironically, those tiny celeb tattoos, in turn, turned JonBoy himself into a celebrity.
JonBoy’s loyal celebrity following is unparalleled. In fact, the 17-year industry veteran has cemented his relationships with many of those same celebrities by reversing roles and having them actually tattoo him. Hailey Baldwin, Chloë Grace Moretz and Sofia Richier have all inked him. He has a tiny K with a crown from Kylie Jenner, and some ink from Trevor Andrew, a.k.a GucciGhost. JonBoy’s newest tattoo? A red ‘Damn’ script tattoo, in celebration of Kendrick Lamar's fourth studio album, Damn.
“It’s one of my favourites right now because he became a friend, he became a brother,” JonBoy said of the tattoo when we sat down with him just before he kicked off his Toronto pop-up. “He’s more than a client. He became family after I hung out with him.”
Hanging with Kendrick is the latest indication that JonBoy’s clout has dramatically shifted over the last year.
With over half a million Instagram followers and a few enviable fashion collaborations, including his latest with minimalist shoe purveyors Koio Collective (two simple suede kicks in navy and pink dropped in limited quantities earlier this summer), his fame continues to skyrocket. Booking an appointment with him these days is nearly impossible, hence the hype behind his first Canadian appearance at Yorkdale Shopping Centre (fans were lined up at 6 am on July 27 for a chance to meet the tattoo artist; he began greeting fans at 4 pm that afternoon). It wasn’t his first tattoo pop-up, but the collaboration with the CONCEPT, Yorkdale’s permanent retail space which offers emerging brands an opportunity to set up shop in a pop-up format, is the latest way he’s making his work more accessible.
Of course, the first thing you notice about JonBoy are his heavily tattooed arms. He’s wearing oversized Gucci frames, a black trucker hat and chunky gold rings on almost every finger. But, despite the labels and the bling, there’s a calming presence about him.
“I feel blessed,” JonBoy told us. “It’s the people that really make me look good. At the end of the day, the people that get tattooed by me are the ones that I owe it to. They’re the ones that make me look good and the ones that are making my Instagram feed look so good.”
Still, after essentially ushering in the single-needle, fine-line tattoo trend, and for all of his accomplishments and enviable Instagram life, JonBoy said he has struggled in life. After all...tattoo artist to the stars was not his original calling.
A native of Illinois, he originally planned to join the ministry. JonBoy started his professional life enrolled at Bible College in Rhode Island before he relocated to Decorah, Iowa, to intern as a youth pastor. He had a few tattoos already, was interested in the art form, and scored an apprenticeship at a local tattoo parlor, Valhalla Tattoo and Piercing. He eventually left his religious pursuit behind to focus on his craft, practicing at biker rallies throughout the Midwest. He moved around, fathered a son, and got divorced before making an impulsive leap to New York City, where things didn’t necessarily go as planned. He found himself lost and feeling hopeless after he was arrested in 2011 (for jumping a subway turnstile).
“I was in a dark place in my life seven years ago when I first moved out to New York, and was ready to end it all,” he confessed to us. “There was a day when I just wished I would get hit by a car and die. I felt like I had failed at everything. But then...I saw this old man just smiling at me and that changed everything. Just a simple smile as I was walking by.”
That chance encounter changed the course of his life, and set the template for the experiences he is known for creating with his clients. A session with JonBoy doesn’t come cheap (he charges a minimum of $300 an hour) but it can only be described as a unique experience. He likes to ensure his customers are comfortable and he’s a perfectionist with his work, but it’s the connection that he is able to quickly establish with his clients that runs as deep as the ink. Read up on his past work and you will see happy customers echoing the same statements over and over. Within moments he finds a connection with his subject that almost feels spiritual.
“I treat everyone the same,” he said. “I try to treat everyone like a celebrity.”
“Even though I don’t know you, you’re trusting me with your body and I want to make sure that I’m there for you 100 per cent even if it means that I’m praying for you,” he said. “I feel like I do that a lot with my clients.”
He’s known for talking openly about his faith and the complexities of his personal journey with anyone who asks, perhaps the most obvious indication that his role as a tattoo artist and his faith in God have come full circle.
“I see the good in everyone and I get to see that in this chair. I get to know someone on a different level and I feel like I’m doing exactly what God has called me to do. This is my call. Putting marks on people and helping remind them who they’ve become, who they want to be. To be able to be a part of someone’s journey," he said. "I get emotional.”
You can follow JonBoy on Instagram at @JonBoyTattoo or track him down at his new spot in New York City: Bang Bang Tattoo.
