Charles’ Tools of the Trade: Sharpie markers, National Brand Laboratory notebook
and ballpoint pen, Stanley tape measure, Hot Tamales, Stumptown Coffee and The New Yorker.

Charles Renfro
ARCHITECT

WHAT’S NINE-TO-FIVE LIKE FOR YOU?
Nine-to-five is just a movie for me (gotta love Dolly Parton); With projects in China, Europe and the Middle East, we’re on call 24 hours a day.

MOST REWARDING PART OF YOUR JOB?
The public enjoying our work. Everything we do is intended to delight, infuriate, enlighten, confuse, provoke and comfort—hopefully all at once.

RECENT PROJECTS
The High Line and renovations to Lincoln Center, both in NYC. Projects under construction are the Broad Museum in Los Angeles and the Museum of Image and Sound in Rio de Janeiro.

WHAT’S ON YOUR BOOKSHELF/KINDLE?
In my bag right now: a New Yorker and Reyner Banham’s classic treatise, Los Angeles: The Architecture of Four Ecologies.

WHAT DO YOU DO FOR INSPIRATION?
Talk to cab drivers. They’re frequently from interesting and exotic places and are usually happy to share their culture with you. It’s a cheap way to take a trip and helps make us smarter and more tolerant. Plus, you don’t have to get vaccinated!

WHAT DO YOU DO IN YOUR DOWNTIME?
Head to the beach for a sand lobotomy.

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