Confession XXIII: Kristin Victoria Barron Of Kriest
Who are you?
Genus: Homo, Â Species: Sapiens
What do you do?
Design objects and lighting based on my dream imagery.
Where do you live?
NYC, LA, and Idyllwild... And lots of planes, trains, and automobiles these days.
How did you get into this line of work?
I come from a fine arts background, having studied ceramic sculpture for many years and did a masters degree in Interior Design from Pratt in Brooklyn. I worked in Design for over a decade in NYC and ultimately found that I deeply missed the physical making process and working with my hands. It ultimately made sense to marry the two disciplines in my studio practice.
Who are your mentors and why?
I met my mentor Vladimir Rodin at a Russian Ball in New York. He is a remarkable human being, who escaped the Soviet Union in the 1970's where he had worked at the Hermitage restoring antiquities and spent time painting in Italy before coming to the US. He has taught me a tremendous amount about old world European craftsmanship and the technical making process. But most inspiring is perhaps his unflagging curiousity and his personal code of chivalry which is not of this era, and is manifested in all that he does. I have a hard time imagining what my life would be like today if I hadn't met him.
How is what you are doing changing the profession you are in?
Check in with me in 25 years and we can see how I have fared....I am of the belief that everyone's voice is so distinctly unique and it it ones job as a designer to express ones voice as clearly and as authentically as possible. If you are successful in this translation of your voice into the physical world then, you have a chance at changing the dialogue. Time is ultimately the deciding factor in who has accomplished this, and who has not.
Favorite place to travel?
My great grandfather built a family lodge in Northern Michigan on the Au Sable river  at the turn of the century. To this day it remains unwinterized and is used soley as a summer house for entertaining, fly fishing and contemplation. It is set in the middle of pine forest and the long driveway is lined with blueberries and wild flowers. Since I was a child, it has maintained the same smell of old books and generations of burnt pine logs. It remains remarkably unchanged by time in it's natural beauty and simplicity.
Ultimate dinner party guest?
Alejandro Jodorowsky
Three people you love and why?
-My husband for his immense heart and generosity of spirit.
-My mother for her laughter and irreverence.
-Eliel Saarinen for designing Cranbrook which taught me how profoundly the things we design shape consciousness.
What is one thing you do every day that enriches who you are?
Nearly every morning before I start the day, I make a cup of tea (lately it has been jasmine green) and meditate on the happenings and people in my life that I am deeply thankful for. I spend the second part of the meditation on the happenings, personal or in the world, that cause me sadness, or pain and I ask the universe for the wisdom and grace to help me navigate these things and make meaning from them.
What is your Mantra?
A poem by Rumi the 13th century mystic:
The Guest House
This being human is a guest house.
Every morning a new arrival.
A joy, a depression, a meanness,
some momentary awareness comes
As an unexpected visitor.
Welcome and entertain them all!
Even if they're a crowd of sorrows,
who violently sweep your house
empty of its furniture,
still treat each guest honorably.
He may be clearing you out
for some new delight.
The dark thought, the shame, the malice,
meet them at the door laughing,
and invite them in.
Be grateful for whoever comes,
because each has been sent
as a guide from beyond.
Something someone told you when you were young that changed you for the better?
When I was 11 years old, I had a wonderful riding instructor by the name of Abby Vandine, I took a very bad fall one day, both the horse and I were terrified. I remember Abby saying to me: ' I know you are very afraid right now but, you must get back on immediately because every moment that passes will give that fear you are feeling inside a chance to grow, and if you wait until tomorrow or the day after to get back on, you will give that fear a chance to take root inside of you, and you must not let let that happen.' I could feel the profound sense of urgency and seriousness in her voice. I distinctly remember the feeling of doing something very adult and important that day when I got back on.
One bit of advice you would tell someone younger than you?
You have life inside of you that is distinctly yours to lead. It is not referential to any of the physical and social currents around you. Sometimes the way forward may be as murky and as faint as a scent in the dark. You must always follow this scent fiercely, all the way to it's end.
What is your confession?
I sleep alone. And I prefer to sleep in very confined spaces. In my new home, I am designing a sleeping chamber of sorts, it will be very narrow with a small thin door and no windows. I may have been a vampire in another life.
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