Award-Winning Furniture Designer Credits DNA

By the time he was 11, Gregory Clark was ranked among the top ten miniature furniture makers in the U.S. At 17, he won a national competition sponsored by Stanley Tool Company for his tambour desk - and created a functioning two-person hovercraft. He says design is in his DNA.

Clark is the owner and founder of Artifact Design Group, LLC., a furniture and art gallery located in south Wilton, Conn. Artifact specializes in designing and building custom furniture in a style that Clark describes as “formal contemporary.” His award-winning sculptural pieces have been featured in top home design magazines, including Architectural Digest.

Artifact’s clients are architects, designers and homeowners looking for museum-quality furniture with a modern twist. On display in the gallery are his unique pieces, as well as the gallery’s limited edition creations.

Every custom project is different, Clark says, although the detail that goes into the planning, design and execution of each piece is the same. During the design phase, he makes sketches before moving onto detailed hand-drawn construction plans. His craftsmen then make a full-sized prototype that the client can “try out for size” at home.

Clark likes to work with exotic woods, often incorporating other materials, which can include metals, natural stone and shagreen, a textured leather made from shark or stingray skins. His console tables are currently the top-sellers.

Clark opened Artifact in 2001 after a 15-year career as an industrial design consultant. His work for Fortune 500 companies, including Schick Razor, Nike and Stanley Tools, resulted in more than 35 product patents.

In addition to displaying Clark’s furniture, Artifact's gallery hosts rotating art shows and salon events. But there is one display, right in the center of the gallery, that is permanent and dear to Clark’s heart. It’s the collection of miniature furniture he made when he was still just a kid. “Look,” he says, “I even made a Governor Winthrop desk.”

 

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