Living Arts Originals began as an art portfolio website. Due to my deep interest and research into symbolism and the power of art, color and design, I included a number of articles on those topics. Those articles brought a surprising amount of traffic to my site. This website now serves three purposes: to share my love of symbolism; to offer unique products related to symbolism through affiliate merchants; and to promote my artwork (see Original Art), design (see Living Arts Media) and writing services (see Kathleen Karlsen).

Original Artwork

My artwork includes both realism inspired by nature and abstract mysticism. My more recent art includes pieces inspired by images from the Hubble telescope and art reflecting my desire to depict the qualities of God and the hidden realities and mysteries of life. See artwork on this site at Original Art and on my art portfolio website (Kathleen Karlsen Art).

My original art is in private and corporate collections in Montana, Idaho, Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, Massachusetts, Alaska, Ohio, Missouri, Virginia, Washington, Iowa, Maryland, New Jersey, Vermont, Tennessee, Florida, Utah, California, Alaska, Pennsylvania, Canada, the Netherlands and in Norway. Both my original art and prints have also been used to raise money for non-profit organizations including Habitat for Humanity, the Montana Ballet Company, the Montana Celiac Society, the Bozeman Music Arts Center, Middle Creek Montessori and the National Breast Cancer Fund.

I have displayed my art in galleries and shows since 2001. My art has also been featured on the cover of two magazines and in an early learning program emphasizing the use of images to develop the brain's capacity for knowledge acquisition and reproduced as mousepads, aprons and greeeting cards.

Symbolism Articles

The articles on this site have been created through years of research in books and online. The compiling of this information is a process of combining and comparing information from many, many sources to try and create the most comprehensive information available for particular topics such as flower symbolism, tree symbolism and so forth.

I have listed resources (books and other websites) for some articles. The challenging thing is that websites seem to come and go, so sometimes I can't find particular sources again or if I put a link to another website in my article, the other websites later move or remove those pages. Then people don't get the resource they expect or I end up with a dead link. In any case, I try to stick with established interpretations of symbols rather than presenting my personal viewpoint.

Beginning in 2010, I started including a few articles written by other symbolism experts in particular fields: feng shui, Chinese astrology, Celtic symbolism and so forth. I greatly appreciate the expertise of these authors and their permission to use their materials on Living Arts Originals. I find that I can offer a much broader spectrum or information by including the work of authors who are experts in these particular fields.

Symbolic Gifts and Products

Researching and locating beautiful and unique symbolic products to offer for sale on Living Arts Originals is truly a joy. These products are wonderful gifts when you are looking for something with personal meaning. Also, the use of symbolic decor in your home or office can help remind you of goals or positive feelings or ideas. I appreciate your purchase of products from Living Arts Originals. The commissions help to support my ongoing efforts to maintain and expand this website. Please see all products available in the Store.

Design and Writing Services

Full media production services are available through Living Arts Media, a marketing company that I founded in 1997 with my husband Andrew, a video producer, graphic designer and web designer. Additional services include book publishing, writing and seminar development. Full information about writing services can be found at kathleenkarlsen.com.

Living Arts Media also draws upon a team of associates skilled in programming, animation and other specialized tasks. We welcome inquiries from all types of businesses. We have extensive experience promoting life-enhancing businesses in the fields of natural health, education, personal growth, green businesses and fine art. My marketing communications and freelance writing work is focused on these topics as well as holistic parenting and spirituality.

Although we serve both national and international clients, our specialty is custom design and writing for small to medium-sized businesses. We have affordable rates and reasonable payments plans to assist clients as needed.

My writing experience includes writing for the web, articles for print and online syndication (over 150 articles published), scriptwriting for documentaries and infomercials, marketing copy and ad copy, ghostwriting, editing, and proofing. I'd love to help you share your message, product or unique services with the world!

From Our Clients

"Warm thanks to you for the excellent, creative work you are doing on my behalf. It is a pleasure working with you and I look forward to an enduring business relationship."

-- Eve Lucia, Owner, Eve Lucia, LLC
www.evelucia.com

"I wanted to personally thank you all for building such a GREAT website for me. I sent it out to all of my family and friends and they're blown away! You guys did an amazing job and the level of customer service I received was fantastic. I would refer you guys to any I know looking to have a website built!"

--Connie Marshall, Owner, Life Fitness 4 Me
www.lifefitness4me.com

"Wow! You guys have completely exceeded my expectations. I am just about speechless. This is exactly what I was looking for. Thanks for the fantastic website and all of the print materials I need to launch my business to a new level."

--Charles Smith, Owner, Fitness 4 All Ages
www.fitness4allagessd.com

"It has been a wonderful experience working with Living Arts Media. They are highly skilled in creating commercials, websites, graphic design and video editing. They are also accomplished artists. They are both very professional as well as highly creative. They come with high recommendations."  
      
--Tammy Kevwitch, Owner, Western Sky Publishing

"I love the websites you create! They're all colorful, bright, easy to navigate and professional. I'd recommend your servcies to anyone. I appreciate your clear explanations of technical issues and the flexibility with billing and payments. You understand small business with big aspirations!"

--Maureen O'Toole, Partner, O'Toole and Allen, LLC

"The website looks fantastic. It far exceeds my hope and expectations for it, and you both have done a wonderful job on so many levels. The idea of really creating a website for my work has always felt totally overwhelming and scary for me, and you not only made it doable for me, but it has actually been a lot of fun. Thank you, thank you, thank you." 

--Cindy Leavitt., One Sky Counseling and Education
www.oneskycindyleavitt.com

About Kathleen Karlsen

I grew up in a military family, attending ten schools by the time I graduated from high school. I had lots of adventures throughout my childhood, good and bad, including my dad's three year recovery from a non-combat plane crash caused by a mechanical failure during a test flight.

I attended college (earning a degree in studio art) at William and Mary in Virginia. I traveled for a number of years both during and after college, mostly on a spiritual quest that took me through many different paths and approaches to life. I eventually settled in Montana, married my husband Andrew (a native Norwegian) and returned to school in 2001 for a master's degree in humanities focused on art, music and philosophy.

Along the way I have taught piano and creative art, learned to design websites, learned search engine optimization, served as a marketing consultant and pursued an ongoing career as a professional artist. I am blessed with a wonderful family, fantastic friends and beautiful mountains all around me.

I teach art part-time and keep busy the rest of the time with this website, Living Arts Media, my art and caring for my family. I have been in Montana for over twenty years and reside in Bozeman with my husband Andrew and our five children: Rose (17 yrs), Benjamin (15 yrs), Joseph (11 yrs), Michael (8 yrs) and Christopher (5 yrs).