Daily Inspiration: Meet Shon Burks

Today we’d like to introduce you to Shon Burks.

Shon, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I grew up in Shaker Heights, Ohio, and from a very young age I was drawn to art. I spent a lot of time at the kitchen table with my best friend, drawing cartoons and creating our own characters. I also had a self-proclaimed art studio in my grandmother’s attic. The space was filled with my supplies and my grandmother’s full-sized tin man named Brutus. During the day, he was just part of the room. At night, it was a different story. Once it got late and dark, it was time to shut it down. My imagination would run wild, and Brutus started looking a little too real.

My early interest in the arts turned into formal training. I took Saturday morning art classes at the Cleveland Museum of Art. That evolved into Saturday classes at the Cleveland Institute of Art which is also where I first attended college when I graduated from high school. After attending the Cleveland Institute of Art, I transferred to Kent State University.

While at KSU, I was a dual graphic design intern for the university as well as Hotcards. Around that same time, I started my own design firm, Frozen Creative. That entrepreneurial side has always been part of who I am. Through Frozen Creative, I’ve had the chance to work with a wide range of clients, including Case Western Reserve University, T-Mobile, the Charles Oakley Foundation, the American Library Association, Danita Harris (SHINE), the Links, American Bass and many others.

After graduating, I continued working at Kent State while also moving into packaging design for a manufacturing company where I designed packaging for products and partnerships with brands like Samsonite, HGTV, and Food Network.

That path led me to where I am now.

I currently work as a graphic designer at the Cuyahoga County Public Library.
CCPL is one of the top large library systems in the country.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
The visual arts is a competitive field from the start. At the undergraduate level, you have to pass design reviews, and that pressure carries over once you graduate. Whether you’re looking for a job or running your own business, You always have to stay sharp and keep improving.

Running a business brings its own challenges. You’re not just doing the creative work. You’re handling marketing, sales, social media, and bookkeeping. You’re responsible for everything.

Balancing a full-time job, running a business, and having a family takes discipline. Time is my most limited resource. Family is important, I don’t shortchange my wife or my daughter, so that forces me to be efficient with my design time. Some days there just aren’t enough hours, and sleep gets the short end of the stick. But as I’ve gotten older, those long nights staying up designing aren’t as frequent.

AI is a new challenge. I’ve seen it shift some of the workload already, but I look at it as a tool. It can’t replace real experience or perspective, and that’s what I bring to the table.

Focusing on one area in design can be a challenge. There are so many directions you can go. Graphic design, web design and WordPress, illustration, branding, packaging, vehicle graphics, motion design, just to name a few. I started out as an illustrator, but I’ve been in graphic design for over 20 years. It’s easy to spread yourself too thin across different areas.

People love to say “jack of all trades, master of none” like it’s a bad thing. It’s not. The full quote is A jack of all trades is a master of none, but oftentimes better than a master of one. This has always stuck with me.

At the same time, I remember a Bruce Lee quote: “I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times.” There’s real power in focus and repetition.

I’ve done a little bit of everything. I’m a Swiss Army knife of design, and that range has helped me adapt, solve problems, and stay valuable.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I currently work as a Graphic Designer at the Cuyahoga County Public Library. I take a lot of pride in the work I do. A big part of my role is helping bring energy to the library’s brand and making sure people understand what we offer and why we’re such an important part of the community.

I enjoy working on large projects and campaigns like the annual report and the Writers Center Stage series. Those projects have a lot of visibility and give me the chance to think beyond just design and focus on the full experience.

My favorite project of all is our annual Summer Reading Challenge. Not only is it a challenge for participants, it’s a design challenge for me. Each year comes with a new theme that I get to build around, and that’s where I really get to be creative. I’ve come to realize I enjoy designing for youth, even more now that I have a 6-year-old daughter. I like creating pieces that encourage reading and make learning feel fun. It takes me back to when I was a kid participating in summer reading myself.

I also love the scale of it. We print over 50,000 Summer Reading Challenge gameboards, so knowing that many people are interacting with something I created puts a smile on my face. Between in-branch promotions and social media, the reach goes even further. I enjoy knowing my work is out there, being seen and used by the community.

I’m also known for bringing our mascot, Auggie the owl, to life. I’ve designed Auggie in all kinds of roles, a rockstar, pirate, astronaut, NASCAR driver, baseball player, and this year, “Indiana Auggie” for the “Unearth a Story” theme. It’s been a fun way to connect with the community and make the brand more relatable.

My design works has been recognized with a Silver ADDY Award. It means a lot to be an award-winning graphic designer.

What sets me apart is my range and how I approach the work. I can draw, design for print, and build for web. A lot of that range comes from running my own business, Frozen Creative, where I’m constantly challenged to adapt and solve different types of design problems. I’ve spent thousands of hours in Photoshop, so that’s second nature to me. I’m strong with layout and creating a clean, professional look, but I can also switch styles depending on the project.

Outside of my role at CCPL, Frozen Creative allows me to switch gears and work with a range of clients, handling both design and print. I design everything from business cards to visual identity systems, websites, and vehicle wraps, which is an area where I’m starting to make a name for myself. It’s a refreshing change of pace. I enjoy working with entrepreneurs, startups, and local businesses, helping build brands from the ground up. I also work with established businesses across the country in industries like real estate, entertainment, sports, and nonprofits. Frozen Creative helps me with my range. It allows me to exercise all of my skills, and I bring that experience back into my work at the library. The duality of working at the library and running Frozen Creative is what makes me a more versatile designer.

I’m also very organized. I’m intentional with how I name and manage files, which makes things easier for everyone involved. I can go back and find just about any design I’ve created going all the way back to the early 2000s.

Is there anyone you’d like to thank or give credit to?
I’ve had a lot of support along the way.

I have to thank God for blessing me with this talent.

My parents, for recognizing my knack for the arts and putting me in art classes early on. I’m sure they really loved getting up early on those Saturday mornings to take me every single week.

Jill (Wisneski) Schumacher, my elementary school art teacher, was one of the first people to really see something in me. She awarded me a certificate that allowed me to take Saturday art classes at the Cleveland Museum of Art. That was turning point for me at that age.

The late Malcolm Brown had a real impact on me. He was a Black male art teacher who was also a nationally recognized artist and a businessman. That was the first time I saw someone who looked like me doing both at a high level. Just being around that and hearing his encouragement stayed with me.

Wally Spisak was another art teacher who recognized my skills early and pushed me to keep going.

Noel Simms is the one who really introduced me to the field of graphic design. He helped me lock in on the craft, pay attention to detail, and take it seriously. He also mentored me while I was an intern at Kent State University, he was the Graphics Manager at KSU at that time. Darryl Crosby, who had his MFA in graphic design, was also a mentor during that time and helped shape how I approached my work.

My fraternity, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., also played a big role. Once I became a member, the network opened up. Brothers I connected with spread the word that I was a graphic designer. Many of them are established businessmen, and they looked out for me by passing my name along to organizations, corporate clients, and nonprofits. That support helped create big opportunities.

Daron “DJ Lokey” Henderson brought me into the business side through Hotcards. I really honed my Photoshop skills during that time. I’ll never forget pulling all-nighters every Thursday as a college student, designing multiple flyers to hit that Friday morning print deadline. That’s where honed in my Photoshop skills and learned to work faster, sharper, and more creative under pressure. That experience led to me becoming a go-to designer in the Cleveland/Flats club scene and Kent/Akron college party scene back in the early 2000s.

Looking back, each of these people and groups came into my life at the right time. They saw something in me, gave me opportunities, and helped shape the path I’m on now.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.frozencreative.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/frozencreativellc/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shon-burks-2775905/

Image Credits
Portrait photo credit: Rewa Koch | Auggie truck photo credit: Greg Mullin