An Architect's Calling Cards

The next time you run into a tongue-tied architect hanging out solo in a corner, one of these handouts may help

Jody Brown May 1, 2012

I received my architectural degree from the University of Tennessee in 1992 and have spent the last 28 years working on a variety of different projects ranging from small house additions to high-rise mixed-use developments. I have a strong background in historic preservation, urban design, and sustainable design, as well as an extensive portfolio of multi-family and single-family residential design. In 2009, I started my own firm. I pride myself on my ability to successfully communicate with clients using clear ideas, easy to understand graphics, straight-forward language, and a sense of humor. Let’s grab a coffee! Twitter - @JodyBrownArch My company website is - www.jodybrownarchitecture.com

I received my architectural degree from the University of Tennessee in 1992 and have... More

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Hello. I'm an architect.

I often feel misunderstood. I'm usually cast as the aloof, artistic type, standing alone in the corner of the room, staring out the window at some distance church steeples. I seem to know important and complicated things. I appear cool and collected on the outside, wearing my perfectly tailored black turtleneck sweater in the middle of July. But on the inside? Well, not so much cool and collected. I can be hard to approach. I can be difficult to talk to. And if you do spend some time with me, I can be impossible to understand. I can be esoteric. I can be obtuse. I can be impatient. I have a problem.

So I've started giving out calling cards to people at parties, to break the ice. This way, people will know how to talk to me. These cards are the equivalent to an architect's medical ID tag. In case I've drifted off into my own thoughts and I'm unable (or unwilling) to talk for myself, I can just show you my calling card, and then you'll know I'm severely allergic to small talk.

And we can just skip it and talk about Prague.

Jody Brown Architecture, pllc

Thank gawd for Ikea.

Jody Brown Architecture, pllc

Unless it's hot. Then I wear black.

Jody Brown Architecture, pllc

[Jody shuffles feet uncomfortably.]

Jody Brown Architecture, pllc

OK, this one's not fair, really. Architecture is one of the few professions I can think of where you are expected to have a broad knowledge of multiple fields. Architecture is part art, science, engineering, sociology, economics, politics, ecology, technology, psychology and so on. We can't know everything about all of these fields. We know just a little about everything, by training. This is probably why I'm nervous talking to you. You think I know what I'm talking about. But I don't.