Kathleen Cooke was born in Belfast and raised in Canada. She attended New York University and the Art Students League. Cooke had her first solo exhibition in 1970 and received a Mark Rothko Foundation Award the following year. She exhibited regularly at the Graham Gallery and Betty Parsons Gallery, New York. Her work is held in public and private collections including the Arts Council of Ireland; the Arts Council of Northern Ireland; Bank of Ireland, and the Dorothy and Herbert Vogel Collection.