Our LEADERSHIP TEAM

Founder and Director

She has been invited to speak nationally and internationally on new and emergent arts pedagogies focusing on student-centred learning and studio processes. She is recognized as an influential relationship-builder who gains consensus amongst students, artists, and external partners to launch new resources, courses, and community projects.
She is passionate about designing and instituting curricula focused on diversity, equity, sustainability, and decolonisation while engaging students and teachers with stimulating inquiry models and creativity capacity building.
As a leader, she builds effective teams, nurtures unique talents, and fosters collaborative work environments based on mutual respect. She is an associate professor in the Faculty of Art at OCAD University in the Contemporary Drawing and Painting Department. She has an honours BFA in painting from the University of Ottawa and an MFA in painting and drawing from the University of Windsor.

Kauffman is an instructor in the BFA program at OCAD U and has contributed to the curriculum at prominent institutions such as Harbourfront Centre, The Royal Conservatory, Station Gallery, and MTM College. With a career rooted in community-engaged programming, her educational design emphasizes connection and inclusion through creativity.
Natalie Kauffman is a practising visual artist passionate about diverse artistic mediums and sustainability, inspiring her students through environmentally conscious art-making practices. Kauffman's programming is driven by studio-based processes, which encourage her students to learn through the beautiful meaning that comes from making.

Education Director