Emily Carol Burns is an artist, designer, curator and educator.

Her interdisciplinary research combines Design for Social Impact, Visual Arts, Curatorial Projects, Entrepreneurship, Typography, and Sustainability. Her work includes the development of new projects and curriculum in design education, and investigations into the creative process.

Burns is the founder of Maake, an independent artist-run arts organization that curates and publishes the work of contemporary artists. Maake publishes a bi-annual guest-curated print publication and an online archive of features and interviews with contemporary artists and artist-run projects. Maake Projects, the public exhibition space, features exhibitions, and curates nomadic exhibitions and public events with galleries across the country. Maake seeks to provide publishing opportunities, improve access and equity in the visual arts, and build community around the world.

Burns specializes in Typography, Type Design, Branding, Editorial, and Design Education, Painting, Visual arts, Curatorial and Exhibition Design. She earned a certificate in Type Design from the Type@Cooper program at The Cooper Union in New York City in 2019, and received a grant for year-long study in type design under Hannes Famira in 2025. Her work as been recognized by AIGA, University and College Designers Association, Graphis, The Art Director's Club of Tulsa, The United Design Alliance, among others.

Her work has been exhibited both internationally and throughout the United States. She has been a visiting speaker at BRIC Brooklyn, NARS Foundation, The School of Visual Arts, Pratt Institute, and NYC Crit Club, and The UCDA Design Education Summit. She has curated numerous exhibitions at galleries around the country, including at galleries such as Unpaved (Yucca Valley), Left Field (Los Osos), Trestle Gallery (Brooklyn), and Assembly Room (NYC).

She is currently an Assistant Professor of Graphic Design at The Pennsylvania State University.