where ideas become environments.
design leadership for public art, interpretive storytelling, and place. we coordinate the artists, the architecture, and the team that builds it.
the design lead teams trust
the conduit who brings all the ingredients together, and gives the project its character.
on collaborative, high-stakes projects, Brian is the design coordinator teams trust to lead concept and design development. the creative impulse is what gives the work its draw, intrigue and inspiration. design leadership →
01
sketch it first.
ideas go on the table as drawings, fast and often, so artists, clients and engineers all react to the same picture.
02
run the room.
live design sessions with fabricators, clients and experts. the conduit between the artist's instinct, the engineer's limits and the budget.
03
keep it epic.
renders, walkthroughs, cut files and drawings compiled in one place, so the big idea survives all the way to the build.
The Work
01
Public Art & Interpretive Strategy
public art vision, cultural and story frameworks, interpretive and wayfinding concepts, artist support.
The River, Salt Lake City International Airport · photo courtesy of Salt Lake City Airport
02
Art + Architecture Coordination
design lead and drafting for art integrated with buildings and landscape.
03
Team Assembly & Production
creative technology, sensory and interactive experiences, fabrication management.
proof
Salt Lake City International Airport
took sculptor Gordon Huether's vision from napkin sketch to a full program of interior and exterior art. design lead and art coordination across architecture and fabrication.
Forever Grateful, Haight Street Art Center
concept, spatial design, and production lead for the immersive exhibition.
Featured · Haight Street Art Center
Forever Grateful
Hall of Flowers — Furthur bus, plaza, and sanctuary as one immersive environment.
Explore the workbuilding community
places that pull people together and give them a reason to stay.
learning through the senses
education you climb, touch and play with, so it actually sticks.
Brian Scharf
I work in the space between vision and execution — sketching fast, connecting people, and keeping ambitious ideas intact while they become real places. Drawing is thinking. Connection is momentum. I protect the idea until you can walk into it.
licensed-track architect (NCARB, exams in progress) with 20+ years across design and the arts.
for design firms, agencies, institutions, developers, artists
lead it, or plug into your team.
bring us in to lead the design, or slot us into a larger team as the art, story, and coordination piece. we flex to the project: a single design lead, or a hand-picked crew of artists, technologists, and fabricators. based in Portland, OR, working wherever the work is.
on community-rooted work, we partner with the people whose place it is, including Indigenous and tribal partners, and follow community-led engagement rather than lead it.
01
a 30-minute conversation.
02
we scope the pieces that fit your project, brief, or RFQ.
03
we get to work, as your lead or part of your team.
