As a child, Tatiana Kaupp, the daughter of anthropologists performing field work in Mexico, explored workspaces and engaged with folk art makers. In addition to attending colorful ceremonies, celebrations and fantastical dances, Tati, as she is known, interacted with beautiful and whimsical objects in her parents’ home. These early experiences were instrumental in enhancing her sense of wonder in art and the process of creating art.

Magical realism, the transformational qualities of an art object and its function, the liveliness of the possibilities of art and art making, the value an object can hold on many levels…these ideas inform Tati’s work today. Color, pattern, narrative, function and the environments they inhabit are at the core of her work. Her personal art vocabulary comes through whether she is working in oil, watercolors, hand building in clay or throwing, working with wood in wall sculptures or furniture. Tati is interested in exploring materials and methods to create art pieces that transform the magical realism of her youth into magical abstraction.