I learned about architecture by watching the sandhill cranes.
Sitting beside an architect looking towards the final years of his career, quietly reflecting on the value of his work as a sole proprietor. I learned by listening to a busy firm principal in Chicago talk about the continued inspiration he found - even on the hardest days - from building safer, more welcoming primary schools. And I learned from the dedication and boldness of a group of planners and designers committed to the successful rejuventation of a downtown district - my own midwestern hometown.
As practice, architecture can hold all of these narratives and in the same instant so much more - it is nuanced, complex, and dynamic. At its best, architecture is an act of story AND of service - to people and to our one and singular earth. I am captivated by architecture because of these qualities - for I am a listener, and at my center I am a storyteller.
The opportunity to create, to tell stories through relationship, service, and physical materials proved a force field greater than I could ignore and it pulled me from my career in engineering. I’ve spent the last 3 years in graduate school, graduating with my MArch degree from UW this summer.
My technical background in engineering acts as a powerful backdrop to my second act in the architectural space. (you can read more about my background here.) However, design as practiced experiment is a lifelong adventure and I started it long before my formal introduction to architecture.
But I’m a lot more than an engineer and a student of architecture. I’m a CrossFit coach, a writer, a burgeoning mountain bike enthusiast, and I’m most at home backpacking between rainclouds in the PNW. Best of all, I’m lucky enough to share abundant life with a devoted partner and two loving, joyful dogs.