“It’s a study in fluid forms, curves, circles, and a continuous line that never quite ends.” Clifton works as an artist first, translating personal memory into formal decisions that hold meaning without explanation.

Travis Clifton is the founder of T Clifton Design, based in Evanston, Illinois. She holds an architecture degree from Cornell University and has worked in corporate interiors, residential design, and furniture for over 35 years.

Before establishing her firm in 2005, Clifton worked at Carlos Martinez & Associates and Gary Lee Partners, where she served as Senior Associate and Studio Director. Her practice is known for furniture that translates personal history into formal decisions, each collection developed from a specific material, motif, or lived experience. She is also a practicing visual artist. Her work is documented at travisclifton.design.

Clifton has designed several collections for Cumberland including Facade, Li, Cuff, and Lloyd. The Cuff Collection draws from cuff bracelet forms and precision metalwork, with four patterns each rooted in Clifton’s own life: Choctaw Indian baskets from her parents' collection, Lake Michigan waves visible from her Evanston block, a circle motif from her own artwork, and the rhythms of bird calls she hears outside her studio.