Ann Kirsten Kennis displayed artistic and entrepreneurial instincts from an early age. Growing up in Buffalo, New York, she was drawn to stuffed animals and, by age 12, had even staged a small carnival, donating proceeds to the local fire department.
Today, Kennis and her team of graphic designers and web developers have used those skills to launch the Cosmic Cubs universe, an early-learning initiative that introduces children to outer space, recycling and environmental responsibility through playful, interactive activities.
The road to Cosmic Cubs was far from direct. After high school, Kennis pursued an interest in architecture and interior design at Parsons School of Design. Her plans shifted, however, when she was discovered by a scout from the Eileen Ford agency, launching a modeling career.
During the 1980s and 1990s, Kennis traveled the world and appeared in a wide variety of hair, cosmetic and fashion advertisements, gracing the pages of hundreds of magazines and catalogs.
“I was meeting people, making so much money and I was having so much fun. Modeling wasn’t really my thing, but I was leading this good life, you know? I was off to Europe all the time, I was seeing the world and so I was like, this is good.”
It was on one of many flights that her creative ambitions resurfaced. Inspired by the popularity of Teddy Ruxpin and Cabbage Patch Kids, she had an idea to create something for children that she could mass market.
She began developing prototypes of what she called Space Bears. Eight bears, one for each planet, were packaged with educational facts about the planets in cylinders made to look like little spaceships.
The bears were eventually mass produced and sold through planetariums and science centers nationwide, before differences with her then business partner brought the venture to a halt.
On the plus side, the bears led to her being introduced to Jeffrey, a toy representative, who later became her husband. Kennis credits their daughter Alex, now 30, with encouraging the bears’ resurgence as Cosmic Cubs.
“Alex knew that mom and dad met because of Space Bears and that she was a toy fair baby. She
came across a box of them and she said to me, ‘Mom, you should bring these Space Bears back, but in a different way.’”
At the time, Kennis says Alex was enthralled by computer games on websites such as Webkinz, which sold stuffed animals with codes that unlocked digital experiences.
“It was all the rage. So she said, ‘You’ve got to do something like that, Mom,’” Kennis explains.
For now, Kennis has held off on producing physical bears, focusing instead on the lengthy and involved development of an interactive CosmicCubs.com website.
“We have these three main characters. Ertle represents Earth, Luna the moon and Marvel for Mars,” says Kennis, noting that each bear has its own personality traits and favorite colors.
Ertle, whose color is blue, cares deeply about the planet; Luna, pink, is empathetic and creative; and Marvel, red, is an enthusiastic adventurer.
The website features an array of educational games, puzzles, songs, videos, printable activity pages and worksheets. Free downloadable apps offer additional puzzles, games and coloring books, with lessons that range from brushing teeth and conserving water to growing food and recycling.
Together, the activities are designed to build hand-eye coordination in children while expanding their general knowledge.
Kennis recently registered the Cosmic Cubs Educational Foundation as a nonprofit, with the goal of bringing the program to schools, youth-serving nonprofits, and libraries.
“I want everybody to know about it. I want kids to know about this, and I want it to continue to grow it.”
A couple of years ago, Kennis enlisted Kenneth George, director of video and photo services at Ironside, to help with social media marketing. He now serves as creative director and animator for the Cosmic Cubs website videos.
“What Kenneth is doing is amazing. He’s got a one-minute video on the three R’s here, reducing, reusing and recycling,” says Kennis.
George has also produced a two-and-a-half-minute animated pilot featuring the recorded voices of local children, with original music by local musician Aaron Derington.
Kennis describes it as the first installment in a potential series and says work on a second animation will begin soon.
“I’ve got a lot more things in the pipeline. I’m getting some puzzles from China; real physical puzzles with the planets on it, the Cosmic Cubs logo and a QR code to send them to the website.”
Coloring books, backpacks, tote bags, T-shirts and water bottles are already available on the Cosmic Cubs website and those of Walmart and Amazon, and she intends to begin donating items to local nonprofits.
Kennis and her husband moved from Connecticut to John’s Island seven years ago. Although she still misses life in New York and Connecticut, she is becoming more integrated into the community and even reconnected with an old friend.
Kennis used the name Kirsten while modeling and explains that after spotting some paintings by abstract artist Britt Bair at M. Maison on Ocean Drive, she went inside to take a closer look.
“I walked in there and Britt says, ‘Kirsten?’ I’m thinking I’m just going to go in to see an artist who’s got some cool stuff,” Kennis recalls.
“And this is crazy; she did my original Space Bear brochure and layout on those capsules. I’d go meet her at her apartment on Lexington and in those days she had to print stuff and use an X-acto knife,” she adds.
“She was Britt Reynolds in the modeling days. We had all these modeling jobs together. And here she is years later, married, and she’s Britt Bair and I’m Ann Kirsten Kennis. I could not believe it; it was the craziest thing.”
The reunion also renewed her own enthusiasm for painting.
“I’ve always loved art so I thought that it would be a good way for me just to chill out,” says Kennis, adding that she is drawn toward abstract landscapes and florals and impressionism.
To that end, she has taken art classes with several local artists, including Rita Zigler and Mary Carter at the Artists Guild Gallery, and also attended a Monique Carr workshop.
Photos by Joshua Kodis
