loudmoufpisces's profile picture

loudmoufpisces's review

4.0
hopeful informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

allsalad's review

4.5
challenging informative reflective slow-paced

An amazing resource. Recommended reading for all design academics. I'm not usually a fan of anthology style books like this, but in this case it seems very appropriate to communicate a diverse array of perspectives from the diaspora.

Be aware that the book is very focused on the USA. I did find it a little jarring that this wasn't really addressed in the text.
dashtaisen's profile picture

dashtaisen's review

5.0
adventurous challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective fast-paced

"The Black Experience in Design" is a big anthology with a ton of variety. There are all kinds of texts from all kinds of people, including people who have achieved "conventional" success in design as well as people who are working to deconstruct what "conventional" design success means.

All of the texts are written in an accessible style. The best articles offer sharp critiques of the dominant theories and practices of design, thoughtful ideas for alternatives, and fascinating glimpses into people and groups who are making their own paths. The interviews are especially strong.

There were aspects of the anthology that were not so good, such as the poor image quality and some numbering issues with the endnotes. But I would put this up there with "Design Justice" and "Closing the Loop" as one of my favorite books about design.
akmay17's profile picture

akmay17's review

5.0
challenging informative inspiring reflective slow-paced