the shelf
Here’s a list of the essays I’m most proud of having written and many of the works my thinking riffs on.
Essays I'm proud of
Works I riff on
a pattern languageopens externallychristopher alexander, sara ishikawa, murray silversteinbook
— which helped me reimagine possibilities for spaces —
bullshit jobsopens externallydavid graeberbook
— which confirmed a sneaking suspicion I've had since I started working —
deschooling societyopens externallyivan illichbook
— which proved to me there was another way of imagining a “school” —
ficcionesopens externallyjorge luis borgesbook
— whose labyrinthine mind laid out the complexity of the universe in front of me —
helgolandopens externallycarlo rovellibook
— who was the first person to help me understand the true implications of quantum physics —
metaphors we live byopens externallygeorge lakoff, mark johnsonbook
— which reminded me how exceptionally powerful our words are in shaping our worlds —
the carrier bag theory of fictionopens externallyursula k. le guinessay
— which reframed how I understand our entire evolution and how it impacts how we tell stories —
the dictionary of obscure sorrowsopens externallyjohn koenigbook
— which showed me it's okay to make up the words that haven't yet been invented! —
the work of art in the worldopens externallydoris sommerbook
— which educated me about the civic power and responsibility of art —
urban acupunctureopens externallyjaime lernerbook
— which offered me a powerful way to think about inviting collective action in a city —