Designer Stephen Burks Dishes On His New PMA Exhibit

The first African American designer to receive the Collab Design Excellence Award takes over the Philadelphia Museum of Art with a new exhibit.Explore chic furniture, lighting, textiles and craft-related experiments at the exhibit

The works of internationally renowned industrial designer Stephen Burks (stephenburksmanmade.com) are not bound by frames but rather art integrated into our daily lives. From furniture to lighting, textiles and craft-related experiments, 45 pieces from his studio—Stephen Burks Man Made—will be on view at Philadelphia Museum of Art’s (PMA, philamuseum.org) Stephen Burks: Shelter in Place exhibit through April 14. Here, Burks offers insight into the collection encompassing a decade of design.

How did it feel to be the recipient of the Collab Design Excellence Award 2023?
I’m honored to join the ranks of historic and contemporary designers like Dieter Rams, Ettore Sottsass and Patricia Urquiola as the first African American designer to receive the award.

What can visitors expect from the exhibit?
At Stephen Burks Man Made, we believe everyone is capable of design. The diversity of products, materials and artisanal approaches to making support our pluralistic vision of design that is inclusive of all cultural perspectives.

Stephen Burks

Which piece in the exhibit do you connect with the most?
If I had to choose one piece that exemplifies the spirit of the studio and my own personal interest in bringing more diverse voices to bear on design, it would be the “Traveler” produced by Roche Bobois. The 40th-anniversary version in wrapped leather cord is a limited edition, but the outdoor collection is available at all Roche Bobois stores.

Why do you think it’s important to collaborate with artisans of various cultures and backgrounds?
Unfortunately, design is still perceived as a Western project. In the rest of the world or the majority world, people have been making things by hand for generations regardless of their level of canonical education. Everyone is capable of dreaming and everyone is capable of creativity, therefore, everyone is capable of design. No one culture has the right to dictate taste.

You’ve worked with brands like Missoni and Roche Bobois. Is there currently a dream brand you’d love to work with?
We’d love to work with brands like Loewe, Hermès and Louis Vuitton.

Do you have anything new coming up?
We’ve just wrapped up a ceramics fellowship at Powerhouse Arts in Gowanus (Brooklyn), where we were making new works in clay for our upcoming Friedman Benda group show “The New Transcendence” curated by Glenn Adamson (through Feb. 24). And later in May, we’ll travel to Sweden where I’ll be the inaugural recipient of the Bruno Mathsson Design Residency.