Her research seeks to both add to the body of knowledge on modernism beyond the Euro-American canon, and to re-theorize the Eurocentric terms with which art historians write that history.
Based upon archival research in six countries, Tiampo's book shed light upon this important yet forgotten group, and also established a critical methodology for situating and theorizing non-Western modernisms transnationally.
[3] In 2013, Tiampo co-curated the exhibition, Gutai: Splendid Playground at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum (New York City), an exhibition that prompted the notoriously tough New York Times art critic Roberta Smith to comment, "accompanied by a terrific catalog, their effort should permanently dislodge any notion of postwar modernism as a strictly Western phenomenon.
Not only has Tiampo been prolific, but she has also taken a leadership role in the field, enabling scholarly conversations about world studies on local, national, and international levels.
[7] At Carleton, she was a co-founder of the Centre for Transnational Cultural Analysis[8] and instrumental to the centre's active interdisciplinary programme of guest speakers and workshops, which have created an environment of engagement across disciplines for scholars and students.