Kris Burns is a lifelong tinkerer and lover of trees and nature. He attended Concordia University to study environmental science and continued his education as a volunteer with Americorps. There he learned how to build houses from the ground up, after which, he became an instructor at American Youthworks, instructing young people in home building. He also volunteered for many years with Austin’s Yellow Bike Project, where he was able to keep his hands busy putting together and repairing bicycles. Kris’s interests were brought together when he started learning woodworking. He began with trim carpentry, cabinetry, and millwork, but realized his passions lay in the finer details of furniture. In 2012, he started working for Michael Yates Design as a fine furniture maker, and would later become shop manager. In 2013, Kris was awarded a fellowship at the Center for Furniture Craftsmanship in Rockport, Maine. There he explored his own work and furniture designs. Currently, Kris is the co-owner of Harvest Lumber Co. in Austin, Texas. A sawmill that takes felled urban trees, mills, kiln dries then retails the lumber and slabs. There he is able to combine his love of the material with the knowledge he gained over the years. He has been a woodworking instructor the past several years and besides Austin School of Furniture he also instructs at The Art School at The Contemporary Austin.
