I measure my success by this metric: Do people love to be in the places I’ve helped create? In order to answer that question with a wholehearted “yes!” I build rapport with clients, collaborate deeply with consultants and engineers, and represent design intent clearly in working and construction documents. In these ways, I rise to the challenge of weaving together our buildings and their ecosystems and creating buildings that enhance people’s well being and strengthen social bonds.
This fall, I leveraged the opportunity that getting my license afforded to more directly address my career goals and broaden my architectural community. It was difficult to leave a job I loved, where I knew I had increased client satisfaction and firm recognition, improved business practices and drawing standards, and designed and detailed buildings that I was proud to visit with my friends and family. However, I knew the next challenge lay ahead – a chance to practice sustainable and regenerative design, develop civic engagement and social cohesion, and exercise my design abilities more fully. My first step in this effort was to set forth on a tour of European architecture. I enriched my kinesthetic experience, building bodily memories of buildings I had only seen in photographs, and informing myself about proportions, materials, and sound. I return inspired to take my next career step as an Architect.
I bring a skill, praised by coworkers, clients, consultants, and contractors, in listening and integrating ideas and feedback while maintaining design integrity. I can balance complex project needs, including constructability and profitability, with opportunities for delight and beauty. By eagerly researching and learning about unusual program requirements, unfamiliar technologies, or new representational tools, I have earned a reputation as a knowledgeable and dynamic team member. I enjoy both leading and participating in teams, and working independently or in groups. As I draw, draft, and document, I track upcoming tasks and note areas where I can advocate for clearer resolutions to design problems. City officials and contractors have applauded my sets for clarity and correctness.
I was born in Durham, NC and lived in Orlando, FL from 2 to 18. Then, I launched to college at Oberlin, in Ohio; after school I worked in Brattleboro, VT. I began my blog right before I took a cross country road trip out to Eugene, OR, where I attended grad school at the University of Oregon to get my Masters in Architecture. After 8 years in Eugene, I've moved to Portland by way of a two-month European trek. So, I'm 32 and I love to play Ultimate Frisbee, go bowling, hang out with friends, fix bikes, bake, cook, read, and generally be where I am. I have lots of ideas, some of them very big, and I'm excited to capture them on this page. I write plenty about the mundane aspects of life, but I also ponder the environment, both that practical space that we live in and the ideal of a healthy, diverse planet. To me, that's the kernel of Being Here.