An illustrated invitation to wonder

Applied Curiosity is an illustrated book. One hundred and eighty watercolor spreads, five parts, ten principles, seven stories from a working practice.

It is about a particular kind of curiosity — the kind that builds something. Not just wondering. Building. Not just asking. Answering with your hands.

The book argues, gently, that the most interesting questions are the ones you can't Google, and that the only way to find out what's on the other side of one is to make something and see.

It is for anyone who has ever felt the difference between collecting points and making a thing — and wanted to spend more time on the second.

It is a book to look at as much as to read. We made it that way on purpose.

Illustration of Stephanie and Isaac Budmen

The Authors

Stephanie + Isaac Budmen

Stephanie and Isaac Budmen run an applied curiosity practice in Syracuse, New York. They work through a method called Creative Discovery, developed over more than a decade of practice. The work spans cultural institutions, emergency response, civic-scale fabrication, advanced manufacturing, and education at every level.

Their work has been welcomed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Smithsonian, the London Science Museum, the Heinz Nixdorf MuseumsForum, and the Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona. In 2020 they prototyped a 3D-printable face shield over a weekend, open-sourced the design, and stood up a global volunteer network that made and donated 3.5 million shields to healthcare workers in ninety days. At the Everson Museum, their multi-year collaboration Touching History lets visitors hold a 115-year-old Robineau porcelain in their hands for the first time. They've taught the method at SXSW, NYU, Harvard, and Haystack.

This book is the practice on the page.

See Applied Curiosity in Action

From planetarium talks to studio practice — discover what applied curiosity looks like when it's working.

Stephanie on stage in a planetarium dome with the Buildini printer projected on a curved screen

Stephanie presenting in a planetarium dome — the Buildini printer they invented projected behind her

Stephanie presenting a 3D-printed replica of the Scarab Vase

Introducing the Scarab Vase — a 115-year-old object the audience could touch for the first time

Isaac on stage with photogrammetry slides projected behind him

Isaac walking the room through how they scanned the Scarab Vase when every proven approach failed

Stephanie speaking with the Scarab Vase pattern projected behind her

The Scarab Vase pattern projected at scale during a recent stop on the tour

Stephanie and Isaac sitting across a table evaluating a 3D-printed Scarab Vase replica

Evaluating a finished Scarab Vase replica together — applied curiosity in the studio

Four ways this book will change how you work

The arcade and the theme park

A way of thinking about the difference between a life of collecting points and a life of making things. The metaphor the rest of the book sits inside.

Applied curiosity, defined

What it is, what it isn't, and the two things a practice of it requires. The principles the authors have worked by, named plainly.

Seven stories

Seven things the authors have made — and what happened in the process. Not case studies. Stories about reaching for something specific, and what came back.

How to start

The smallest version of a practice. What to do on a Tuesday afternoon when you suspect you should be making more than you are.

Bring Applied Curiosity to your organization

Stephanie + Isaac come to schools, museums, libraries, design programs, and companies. They give talks, run workshops, and lead short residencies.

The format is whatever the room needs — a reading, a conversation, a build session with materials on the tables, a week of working alongside students or staff on something specific. They have done all of these. They are good at adapting.

If you want them to come, the tour page has dates and a way to ask.

See the 2026 Tour →