Stephen Burks

Dedon

Cinde W Ingram -- Casual Living, 8/1/2012 2:00:00 AM

Stephen BurksQ: When did you start designing?

A: I've been designing my whole life, but professionally for about 12 years.

Q: What training did you receive?

A: I was educated at the Illinois Institute of Technology's Institute of Design (the New Bauhaus) in industrial design and Columbia University's Graduate School for Architecture.

Q: What inspires you to design?

A: Life, people and community.

Q: Who are the designers who have influenced you the most?

A: I closely follow art, fashion and architecture. Not just design.

Q: What makes a great casual furniture design?

A: If someone loves it and it finds a place in their lives, it's great.

Q: What materials are most satisfying for you to create designs for?

A: I've designed in many different materials and try to use what's appropriate for the project. Lately, I'm fascinated by wood.

Q: Of which designs or accomplishments are you most proud?

A: My most recent . . . Dala for Dedon.

Q: When the well runs dry, how do you recharge your creative spark?

A: I'm constantly traveling (one to two weeks per month) to keep the well full.

Q: What do you know now that you wish you had known earlier in your career?

A: I wish I had realized that as designers we can also design our career and create our own unique way of working, outside of the molds of history. It's exciting to initiate the projects I do and help them get to market from a business perspective as well.