Kathryn Jaliman lives and paints in New York. Her art, which she calls Essence Art, is a reflection of the spirituality she explores in her life and work. The purpose of Essence Art is to connect the viewer with his or her own inner essence, with the interrelatedness of the Earth and its inhabitants and to foster wisdom, insight and spiritual qualities. Kathryn is committed in her painting and her teaching to increase understanding and mutual respect between people. Kathryn has led workshops for thousands of individuals which deepened their spirituality, their relationships and their connection to life enhancing Qualities.
Kathryn has recently completed a series of 99 paintings that she has been working on since 2001 in an effort to build bridges with individuals in the Islamic World. The inspiration for the paintings is The 99 Noble Qualities or Asma Allah Al-Husna. The paintings are each an abstraction inspired by a Noble Quality and not the representation of the Quality.
While living in Asia in the 1990’s (Taiwan, Thailand, Nepal and India), Kathryn painted, exhibited and taught about Essence art. She exhibited in galleries in Taiwan and appeared frequently in magazines, newspapers and on television. Her exhibit at the American Cultural Center was the opening event of a major Global Summit of Women, which attracted female Parliamentarians, Prime Ministers and other office holders from around the globe. Kathryn had an exhibit of her paintings in Kuala Lumpur opened by the American Ambassador to Malaysia. She had a retrospective of her work sponsored by the Asian Cultural Institute in Taiwan. Kathryn also lectured in museums and galleries on Essence Art as a vehicle for spiritual development and human understanding.
In the mid 1980’s, Kathryn lived in Northern California, where she painted and studied with the abstract expressionist artist Sam Francis. Kathryn also studied with the painter Gordon Onslow Ford, a member of the Paris Surrealist School led by Andre Breton, who coined the term Essence Art.
Kathryn studied art history at the Fogg Art Museum, Harvard University, earned a Masters in Fine Art from Lesley College in Cambridge, Massachusetts and a BS in Education from the University of Wisconsin at Madison.