Kristin Shardlow, MFA

Kristin Shardlow Résumé (.pdf)

Kristin was born in Onamia, Minnesota, and raised on the south shore of Lake Mille Lacs. As the eldest of five siblings, she learned responsibility and leadership from an early age, along with other useful skills like play-doh sculpting, finger painting, fort building, and snowman making. A lifelong fascination with cultural diversity developed alongside these artistic endeavors and two weeks after graduating high school, she and her best friend flew to Europe and spent the summer on Eurail passes. She later attended college at the University of Wisconsin-Madison where she majored in Spanish and International Relations and spent her junior year abroad in Madrid.

After graduating in 2001, Kristin moved to Duluth, Minnesota, where she focused on her artwork while gaining valuable skills in a variety of jobs, including political fundraising, marketing and sales, cruise supervision, and house painting. She also volunteered for various organizations, was active in the Bridge Syndicate, and founded Venga!, a Spanish conversation, dance, and film club. In 2003 she was nominated for a Bridgie Award for her efforts in promoting the Arts & Culture in Duluth, and was awarded an independent artist grant funded by the McKnight Foundation, which she used to produce her first solo art exhibition.

Kristin was accepted to the MFA program in Interactive Design at the University of Minnesota in Fall 2005. Not surprisingly, her thesis project married her two passions—art and culture—by examining interactivity through the lens of Argentine tango, and involving two trips to Buenos Aires as well as two years of dedicated tango practice. Since finishing her MFA in February 2008, Kristin has focused on building her freelance design business while simultaneously working toward completion of a Ph.D. in Design Communication. Her dissertation is looking at design aesthetics and immigration, focusing on Latino mercados in Minneapolis.

In December 2008 Kristin received an email from a stranger named Ben Shardlow who had seen her featured in an Architecture MN design article. They met for a drink in January, traveled to Mexico City in March, and were married in September. They live in St. Paul with their dog Harper.