Tara Karaim was born and raised in Kansas City, Missouri. She attended the University of Kansas where she earned her BFA in Art History in 2013. In 2016, she graduated with her MA in Art History from the University of Missouri-Kansas City. Commissioned portraiture is the foundation of Karaim’s oeuvre. Because of her education, she incorporates her knowledge of the history of art into her work as well.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, Karaim has been painting her experience at home with her partner and two dogs. These are intimate portraits that show the confinement of the pandemic, but also the comfort, joy, and relief that home provided. Throughout Karaim’s oeuvre, she focuses on colors and textures to show the beauty of her subjects and give viewers something to visually admire and explore.