After graduating from Washington University in St. Louis with a degree in Graphic Design
Kris set off to explore the world, feed an artist temperament, and satisfy a voracious curiosity — by taking a job as a flight attendant. But because Kris is an LLL (life-long learner) the opportunity for study is always an attractive suitor. So when her flying career allowed her the chance to further her education in graphic design at the Allgemeine Gewerbeschule in Basel, Switzerland, she flew at the chance. Who wouldn’t want to study with some of the most well-known graphic artists and typographers in the world?
Upon arriving in Basel Kris first became fascinated by the Swiss people in general, their craziness for order and precision, and the incomprehensible Swiss dialect which calls all big things small.
But as the teachers patiently imparted their knowledge of design and typography to her and other foreign students like her…slowly directing them along their path of perfection…she turned her attention toward the rest of Switzerland.
The mountains were where physical and emotional senses she hadn’t even known she possessed were awakened. Taking trips into the mountains and learning about the traditions that enliven them caused her to develop a profound respect for this “tiny” country.
It is in Basel that Kris met the subject of Switzerland To Alaska: Just To Die, and knew instinctively that because of this artist’s way of seeing, because of this artist’s way of expressing himself, because of this artist’s extraordinary journey into the wilderness, that the world would be a poorer place if his story weren’t shared.