KRIS MANNION
Kris is a creative transport from the midwest, moving to Idaho in 1973 to attend graduate school at the University of Idaho. She never left, and has rooted herself in the Treasure Valley ever since. Before leaving Michigan, her first career was in a range of human service venues including public assistance and child welfare for the State of Michigan. After graduating from Idaho in Clinical Psychology, she spent the next part of her career in clinical counseling and school psychology.
She was a late bloomer in the arts, and at sixty years old enrolled at BSU in the Fine Art program with an emphasis in ceramics, where she graduated in 2013. She has studied at Penland School of Craft in North Carolina, Anderson Ranch in Colorado, and engaged in private lessons and mentorship with various artists experienced in porcelain form casting. She was a longtime member of BOSCO and served on the board until 2018.
She currently teaches mold making and traditional ceramics, and recently presented the craft of mold making to docents at the Boise Art Museum. Her clean, graphic ceramics take inspiration from industrialism and the evolution of functional work.
When not making art, Kris prides herself on being an avid cyclist, and has competed both locally and nationally as a time trial specialist.
In 2020, Kris received a grant to purchase a slip mixer and supporting utility stand for her home ceramics studio.
"I aim to produce art that marries technical precision with an obviously hand crafted form. I design every mold from a carved or wheel thrown model. No two pieces emerge from a mold exactly the same way."
