Owner, proprietor, and driving creative force behind Triple Crown, Deirdre Aikin is a fixture in the DMV tattooing community and has been an iconic figure in tattoo history for 35 years, professionally tattooing for over 27 years, internationally and nationally. 

Well known for her amazing color work, and emphasis on extreme fine-line and detail work, no technique or style is beyond her reach however she has made her mark in the tattoo industry through her perfection of mandalas, geometric designs, realism, and trash polka. She has a strong passion for South East Asian and Catholic stylings and iconography, and a lifelong love for Art Nouveau.

A District of Columbia native, she began her tattooing career in the mid-80s working in tattoo shops as a kid, and started her apprenticeship at sixteen After a few years as a laywoman tattooer, she laid the foundations of her career in the underground tattoo scene in New York City in the 90s, where she was one of the few women in the industry at the time, a part of the New York tattoo society, and one of the first people to get licensed by New York when it finally became legal.

Alongside her blossoming career, Deirdre pursued an illustrious academic career. While she was tattooing in Manhattan, she was given an opportunity to go to Parsons School of Design, where she received her Bachelors of Fine Arts with a concentration on Asian art history, and a minor in Art Education with a teaching certification from Bank Street College of Education. 

After her academic and collegiate journey in NYC, she moved back into the DC Maryland Virginia area, where she received a grant to go to Maryland Institute College of Art to pursue her master’s degree. She received her masters degree in fine art, with a concentration in sculpture from Rinehart School of Sculpture. Also while attending MICA she received the CAA fellowship award for excellence. Throughout her academic career she received mentorship from feminist writer and acclaimed art critic, Arlene Raven. All through her academic career, she also tattooed to support herself and family.

Her philosophy for tattooing is that everyone deserves to feel beautiful, strong, and powerful, and if tattoos help someone reach that state, then it is her duty as an artist to realize the client’s vision upon their body in it’s best incarnation.