Scoville Brown Cooperative

My passion to build started at a very young age. Most kids were thrilled with their toys, but all I wanted was the boxes they came in. Stacking, taping, and obsessing over every detail.

My desire to build never went away. After high school, I studied carpentry at Alfred State College, honing my craft and learning wood working. In the early years of my career I began a small business, Jim Braunscheidel Carpentry. Earning respect from the community, my business evolved into home building and residential/commercial renovations. With the business growing and needing more space I purchased an old brick warehouse, formally Scoville Brown Wholesale Grocery Co.

In my carpentry work, some of the jobs I enjoyed most were restoring and preserving the craftsmanship and artistry of the past, such as historical renovations to many Victorian and Arts and Crafts homes and converting an old hardware store circa (1850) into a coffee house and artist studios.

With this type of work, I amassed an interesting collection of antiques and architectural pieces over time. After sustaining a severe injury to my leg, I was unable to keep up with the physical demands of my carpentry business. A friend of mine suggested I take this collection on the road to Brimfield Antique show in Massachussets. I took a leap of faith and went. This altered my course. I changed the name of the business to Scoville Brown Cooperative and spent a decade buying, selling, and salvaging Architectural elements.

Like anyone in their craft, my work has evolved over time. I began to see new, re-purposed objects in the items I collected or salvaged. I combined what I learned as a young man building with what I learned through the antique business and started designing and building furniture, lighting, and accessories. For me this was a natural progression. These works on the following pages are my artistic expression and interpretation of where history, creativity, and functionality meet. I hope you can see the beauty and joy I feel in each piece I create.