Born in Manhattan, Kansas, Tatom began his formal art training at the University of Utah from which he obtained a B.F.A. in 1972 on a full merit scholarship. From there, he studied at the Kansas City Art Institute from 1973 – 1976.
Kirk Tatom was one of the foremost carvers of stone in Santa Fe for nearly 20 years. Tatom’s success in sculpture was his unique ability to create unquestionably original abstract avian forms. In 1997 he put down the chisel and picked up the paint brush