Three Layer Cake

Readymade Projects:  Interview with Stephen Burks 

Sharks that live in the open ocean must continually swim forward in order to stay afloat and get enough oxygen to breathe.  If they cannot move, even when sleeping, they sink and suffocate.  That dependency on movement is the first thing that came to mind after months of trying to nail down an interview with Stephen Burks, starting early in 2006.  His work is his buoyancy and oxygen.  He’s always in movement.  Luckily, the premier of his new designs for Modus UK during Milan’s Salone del Mobile in April, provided the best opportunity for us to meet, he felt.  About a head taller than the rest of the people in the room, and with a smile for everyone, he was impossible to miss.  Among the many guests at the premier of Modus' new line, there were quite a few waiting for Stephen.  He shook their hands, spoke with them, and moved forward through the room adeptly, never stopping too long with any one person.  During our brief but sufficient exchange, one of the questions he asked of me was how much time I needed for the interview.  After I answered, I could hear the data being processed.  He was calculating whether such a block of time posed a mortal threat to his continual movement.  Then it was a micro-pause, a nod, and he agreed.  (Portrait Stephen Burks)

 
I sought out the Chicago-native after seeing his Ambrogio bookstands (Zanotta, pictured here) in an Italian design magazine, and studying his online portfolio a little further.  Since leaving Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture and going into business for himself, his bookstand is but one of the many collaborations he has had with heavy-hitters like Cappellini, Moroso, Missoni, and most recently Estée Lauder and Modus UK.  Today, as Director of Manhattan-based Readymade Projects, the consultancy Stephen established in 2002 (Readymade started in 1997 with just furniture then officially became Readymade Projects), his portfolio of work ranges from interiors to fragrance packaging, product design to art direction, and spans the globe, covering the U.S., Europe, and Japan. 

 
Stephen has consistently been the first African-American industrial designer to ever collaborate with his clients.  This year he was also a featured design creative in Infiniti’s international ad campaign, In Black.  In his Infiniti feature on Space, as well as in the brief exchange for this interview that Stephen was able to work into his fiercely busy schedule this month, the importance of measurement, precision, and user interaction with space and product make a strong impact.  These are personal and professional concepts where Stephen is concerned.  “I’ll give you my answers and if you have any questions about what I’ve said, feel free to ask,” he said.  But I was speechless.  In addition to his eye for essential, immediate and purposeful design, he is incredibly precise and is as skilled at using language as he is at designing, as if language were an element of design like color or shape.  I’m always hesitant to use the word ‘perfect’, but you can definitely say that Stephen Burks listens to the person in front of him, and gets it right the first time.
 

It’s too early in his career to talk about “defining pieces,” he says.  But it’s not too early to talk about enjoyable pieces and good design.  At just 37, there will be many more years to come up with Stephen’s defining pieces, even from among those he has already designed. 

The issue of the design celebrities has come up during several interviews and you predicted this is a waning concept in an essay in David Carlson’s spring newsletter.  What do you think gave rise to the “star system” (as Erwan Bouroullec referred to it) and has it positively influenced the field?  Has it taken away from it in any way? 

The so called star system was created and supported by the press. After Phillipe Starck's imminent rise to fame, the media realized that design was a marketable field for publications. More magazines sprung up and more stars had to be created to fill them. Obviously, the great designers of the world are more than deserving of the attention they have received. The common complaint is that the influence of the press on the market and manufacturers dictates that these stars get more and more work, become more and more famous and there is little room for lesser known designers to become known. I believe the work should always speak first and if your work is strong, all else follows. Press should never be the primary concern of a designer for industry. (Cup Chairs/Modus UK)

What role does being a “designer” play in your life? 

I am a designer. Making ideas a reality is what I love to do and it affects all aspects of my life for the better. 

What is the obstacle you most frequently encounter in your profession? 

The translation of a designer's ideas into reality is always a challenging and necessary experience. Depending on the client, this translation can be good or bad.

European vs. U.S. design:  What can they learn from each other?

Design is design all over the world. However, certain markets have a different appeal than others. All markets are interesting for various reasons. I don't believe the U.S. market should behave the way the European market does and vice versa. As the world becomes one big market, these specificities become increasingly important. How products are used and perceived is dependent on the cultural perspective. We can all learn from each other and develop more interesting products as a result. (Parallel Bookshelf/Modus UK)

A lot of buyers came away from the Salone del Mobile this year with a lackluster impression of the product offering.  How do you deal with the pressure of creating something original and innovative?  How do you verify that what you’re doing hasn’t been done before? 

I think the drive towards luster is primarily what is wrong with the industry today. People visit Milan expecting to be visited by God every year, but in reality we're just making furniture. The primary goal of our work should not be to please visitors at the Salone and come up with something new. This obsessive cycle reduces our work to fashion. Fashion is disposable and seasonal, furniture shouldn't be. This 'Fashion System', as described by Roland Barthes in his book of the same title, is unsustainable. It's impossible to produce something original and innovative on seasonal demand.  At Readymade Projects, we try to derive objects from observation. By remaining aware of how people live and would like to live, how people use things or would like to, observing the shifts in culture we believe we can find interesting intersections for new products.

But to seek innovation or difference for differences sake has never interested me.

Of course it's important to know history, but it's equally important to be in touch with the present conditions of humanity in all cultures, not just the European or American.

Which is the most valuable skill that school taught you? 

I think the education of an architect and a designer is an amazing field of study. The greatest gift any institution can give to its students is to teach them to educate themselves, to think methodically and live passionately. 

What didn’t it prepare you for? 

Design is a business which is so broad, it’s impossible to learn it all.  So I think there’s always more to learn in that respect.  We didn’t do internships at the Institute of Design (Illinois) and I didn’t work for architects when I was at Columbia, so that real life work experience would have been interesting.  I don’t know if it would have been valuable or not, because I think you start to limit yourself as a student when you know too much about the real world. (Missoni Fragrance packaging design/Estée Lauder)

Time Capsule:  Which three of your designs would you include in a time capsule today which say the most about you and the times we live in? 

You want me to say which are my own three favorite designs right?  (laugh)  I'm too early in my career to time capsule anything.  I would like to imagine that everything I've designed is still being enjoyed today and will be enjoyed in the future.  I just don’t think there’s a way to sum up an era through three objects.  Or at least personally, I can’t. 

Oh, it doesn’t have to be your stuff.  An example of something illustrative that maybe you’d put in today, in 2006, might be your Blackberry…  OK, so maybe that doesn’t say something about you, Stephen Burks, but it definitely tells about the times we live in…

Sure, ok. So if I wanted to say something about me personally, I’d like to capture something about language and something about measurement:  What about Wikipedia?  No, that’s too much.  I’d say a dictionary, a digital camera, can I say a pen and paper?  And a tape measure.  That’s five things.  And a map of the world.  Six.  I know we’re not discovering new places, but I think people don’t know enough about what’s already out there.

What motivates you? 

Ideas. 

(Light Frame 2005/David Design pictured above)

 What food or dessert best describes your work/design philosophy?

I would identify most with Japanese food in terms of process and presentation. 

The first thing you notice in a restaurant? 

The people and then the service. If there are no people, I don't eat there. How the service interacts with the customer is also very important to me. 

Eating what food brings back the best memories and why? 

Cereal brings back the freedom and joy of childhood.

The first piece of furniture you bought for you home? 

A futon mattress to sleep on the floor. 

The last piece of art you fell in love with? 

Thomas Demand's wallpaper at the Serpentine Gallery. 

No home is complete without? 

People. 

Magazine (or information source) you can’t live without? 

The New York Times. 

You’re most proud of your collection of… 

Books 

When I travel, I always bring __ my digital camera__ with me.