[ABOUT]
phenomenology (n.) – the study of lived experiences.
We are Phenomenal Worlds, a research and experiential design studio that begins with people.
Values, beliefs, and practices shape the physical and digital “worlds” all of us create – from the neighborhoods that we call home, to the communities we build around what we watch, the foods we eat and things we love. Specializing in qualitative and archival research, Phenomenal Worlds captures in-depth insights into the lived experiences that shape how people build their worlds. We partner with institutions and brands to turn those insights into stories, experiences, and strategies that engage, move, and inspire audiences.
[FOUNDER]
Janan Graham-Russell, Ph.D. is a cultural anthropologist and writer whose work lives in the space between people, theory, method, and storytelling. Her projects – spanning cultural heritage documentation, ethnographic and historical research, exhibit and curriculum development, creative direction, and tour design – build on a decade of experience in community engagement, qualitative research, archival study, with particular expertise in the anthropology of religion. Her research in religion serves as a foundation for how she understands and translates the values and practices that shape people's lives.
She earned her M.A. from Howard University and her Ph.D. in the Study of Religion from Harvard University. Janan’s research on community identity formation as well as African American/Afro-Caribbean history and culture has been shared through scholarship and commentary featured by Oxford University Press, Harvard, BYU, and The Atlantic.