One of the great challenges of residential work is the personal nature of the space and the emotional attachment that often comes with it.  So, designing for these spaces typically requires that the architect play a role of designer, counselor, builder, psychic and accountant; this is also the aspect of the work that makes it most satisfying.  The architect must draw on more than simply their training as a designer, but also draw on personal experience, communication skills and any other education they might have in their background before coming to architecture.

As the founder of Braun Architects, I came to architecture later in life than most in my class who were talented, focused students but had gone straight into the master’s program from their undergraduate days.  I had work experience not only through the many odd summer jobs I had held throughout my early years but also the early “career path” jobs that I worked after graduating from Drake University where I earned a degree in philosophy and a minor in economics.  Both these degrees, though difficult to market to prospective employers back in 1991 when I worked a variety of jobs from working the trading floors of Chicago brokerage houses, to teaching English to children in Japan, have served me well as a business owner and residential architect.  They afford me both the credibility and degree of comfort with the numbers involved with budgets and the like and the communication skills to connect with my clients, understand what they are looking for and successfully convey ideas and solutions to them. 

Forged in an era marked by the “Great Recession”, Braun Architects was founded on the principal that a high level of service should be accessible to all and that good design is not about creating an impressive portfolio of projects rather it is founded in the reality that our projects must fully support the lifestyles of those who dwell in the structures we seek to improve; we work tirelessly to make the practical beautiful and the beautiful function practically. 

With experience that ranges from church projects to tenant build-outs, K-12 to university buildings, I have the background to provide design solutions that suit virtually any program and budget.  I am equally happy to provide client driven solutions as well as solutions that challenge the underlying assumptions; the best design is sometimes the idea that no one saw from the start.  Similarly, my work does not have a “style” agenda.  My design process does not focus on the creation of a unique aesthetic; rather the intent is to follow the will of the client to determine the ultimate look of the project whether it is to match an existing style or if the goal is to contrast with it. 

So, whether your goals are to remodel an existing house or, to create a new home to support your current lifestyle or future retirement dreams, I hope you will consider Braun Architects.

Our Philosophy

You will notice sprinkled throughout this web site various photos of places throughout Europe; many originate in Italy.  These are photos that I have take myself.  Their purpose in this site is not simply to serve as "eye candy", though I must admit there are some beautiful landscapes as well as great architecture depicted in these photos.  The more subtle purpose served by these images is to illustrate the value of our heritage, our collective history and the value of reusing, redefining and rejuvenating the built environment as opposed to replacing it.  

In my travels through Europe and Japan the value of these cultural asset are more apparent; and nowhere is it more so than in Italy where centuries-old structures are imbued with new life when they are infused with modern features and amenities while simultaneously maintaining the ancient charm.  Here in the United States our built environment is much newer than these buildings that we see around the world that have these rich histories of their own; we are at the starting point and therefore have a lot of opportunity to start that process of integration of old and new that is so elegantly and timelessly expressed in buildings and city-scapes around the world.