Stephen
Burks

Brooklyn, NY
2008 USA Fellow
This award was generously supported by the Target Corporation.
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Industrial designer Stephen Burks founded his studio, Readymade Projects, in 1997. He has developed products for major commercial firms such as Boffi, Calvin Klein, Cappellini, Estee Lauder, and Missoni. He was the first African American designer to work with any of these companies. He has also served as a design consultant for the nonprofit Aid to Artisans and the Nature Conservancy in South Africa, Peru, Mexico, India, and Australia, collaborating with local artisans to find international markets for their products. As a result of those experiences, Burks has developed an interest in a new production model wherein machine parts are combined with handmade elements to create unique objects that can be distributed globally through major brands.
Portrait photo courtesy Stephen Burks.
- Quilts of Radical Hospitality/Edredón de hospitalidad radical, 2008, two fabric quilts (each 866.14 x 228.60 cm); photos courtesy Joshua White
