OUR CORE VALUES

OUR LEADERSHIP

OUR TEAM

CORE VALUES & FOCUS

 

core values

Act with integrity

Maintain open, honest, and clear communication among the team and with clients; treat teammates and clients with respect. Have a positive attitude that is not ego-driven; hold ourselves accountable.

Bring creative energy

Listen closely to clients’ visions and use our collective knowledge and creativity to offer creative solutions for planning, design, and fabrication.

Deliver a quality product

Through precision, accuracy, smart choices, and appropriate materials, create a product that meets or exceeds clients’ expectations, on time and within budget guidelines.

Work as a team

Recognize and value the individual contributions of each team member; foster a team environment that is fun, supportive, and energizing, as well as highly productive.

Challenge ourselves

Strive individually and collectively toward self-improvement, continual learning, expansion of our capacities, and completion of unique and innovative projects.

 

Core Focus

  • To create a WOW experience

  • The design and fabrication of creative environments for the individual consumer and small organizations.

Target Markets

  • Emerging/small children’s museums and historical societies

  • Regional theaters

Our Three “Uniques”

  • Being a “turn key” operation. BKD can take the process from concept to creation to installation.

  • Specializing in smaller spaces and utilizing every square inch.

  • All BKD staff have a theatrical background, providing a unique approach to designing creative environments.

 

LEADERSHIP

JEFF BROWN

Founder and Owner

I began my career with 12 years in educational theater, serving as scenic designer, lighting designer, and/or technical director for nearly 150 shows and events.

For 7 years after that, as Production Manager for the Duluth Playhouse in Duluth, MN, I led the design teams and coordinated all production aspects for another 100+ productions while also creating freelance designs for other local and regional theater companies.

Although my career began in technical direction and design, the roles allowed me to develop strengths in project management and planning, for events, for facilities, and for complete immersive environments.

I broadened my experience beyond theater when I spent a year consulting on, designing, and fabricating the learning environment and exhibits of the Children’s Museum of Southern Minnesota (Mankato, MN; grand opening was May 2015). This opportunity greatly strengthened my knowledge of exhibit design and construction and rejuvenated my creativity and passion for discovery and research – and the thrill of being involved in projects that leave a true legacy!

With this renewed energy, I formed BrownKnows Design in 2015. Along with many additional scenic and lighting design projects since then, my exhibit design and fabrication portfolio has expanded to include projects with Duluth Children's Museum (Duluth, MN), Children's Discovery Museum (Grand Rapids, MN), Minnesota Discovery Center (Chisholm, MN), Red River Zoo (Fargo, ND), Otter Cove Children’s Museum (Fergus Falls, MN), Hjemkomst Center (Moorhead, MN), and Adams Homestead & Nature Preserve (N. Sioux City, SD), among others!

I look forward to working with more sensational people and passionate organizations on inspired projects.

TEAM MEMBERS

 

Ashley Wereley

Ashley is an exhibit designer, scenic painter, exhibit painter, muralist, sculptor, and graphic illustrator. She stumbled into scenic painting while in art school when a friend at a local church asked her to paint some scenery for a youth camp. That project led to a decision to pursue a BFA in Theatre: Scenic Design from the University of Minnesota Duluth. After achieving her degree in 2015, she was asked to join the Duluth Playhouse as their Charge Artist, which led to a connection with BrownKnows Design. She began partnering with BKD part-time in 2015 and came on as the company’s first full-time employee in 2019. Ashley has designed and painted large-scale murals for BKD’s exhibits at the Children’s Discovery Museum, Otter Cove Children’s Museum, and Adams Homestead Nature Preserve. She has also designed, sculpted, and painted large-scale sculptural exhibits for Adams Homestead Nature Preserve and the Dorothy Pecaut Nature Center. As BKD’s Lead Artist, Ashley is the primary exhibit and mural painter, graphic illustrator, sculptural fabricator, and artistic consultant. With her background in studio art, she is detail-oriented and dedicated to ensuring the quality and longevity of each project.

Zach Stofer

A bit of a “Renaissance man,” Zach has spent much of the last decade entertaining the Duluth, MN, community as a stage actor, voice actor, and charismatic bartender. Since joining BrownKnows Design in 2022 as a fabricator, he has built upon theatrical construction skills, expanding his repertoire into fine carpentry and exhibit-building techniques.

Curtis Phillips

A professor of Scenic Design for the Department of Theatre at University of Minnesota Duluth, Curtis also keeps his skills sharp as a frequent freelance designer for the Duluth Playhouse and the Cumberland County Playhouse (WI). He earned his MFA at University of Wisconsin-Madison and worked with Jeff Brown on multiple Duluth Playhouse productions before becoming Jeff’s digital design software guru and a critical design/drafting collaborator for BKD.