By Abraham Burickson
228 pages, softcover, $35
Published by Yale University Press
yalebooks.com

It’s the experience, not the thing. In 2015, the United Kingdom–based Museum of Empathy presented an event at a pop-up shoe store and invited visitors to walk around in shoes from a mixed group of strangers. Each pair of shoes also played recordings of the shoe owner’s voices recounting their personal life. The result was impactful and empathetic. A Mile in My Shoes embodied design principles Abraham Burickson values in his work exploring the relationship between what we make and how it is experienced.

Burickson’s connection with experiential design began in 2001 when he co-founded the performance group Odyssey Works with Matthew Purdon. Since 2012, he and co-director Ayden Leroux have collaborated with hundreds of artists across numerous disciplines. The group designs experiences for a singular audience member chosen from a list of applicants. Using research and in-depth interviews, they create personalized events that may include private concerts, unique environments, curated artifacts and spontaneous encounters delivered over time.

Experience Design gives readers insight into the methodology of an experience designer and the necessity for humility and empathy as their essential tools. Though the included work is collaborative, independent creatives may also find interest in Burickson’s research, his pursuit of deeper meaning and his eclectic references, such as Jay-Z and Mahatma Gandhi. Kudos to designer Erica Holeman for her clarifying two-color page design and balance of illustrations. As Burickson says of creative work, “the way in which these small projects change our understanding of the world that is their source of delight.” —Ruth Hagopian ca