Olivia Maasdam - 2025 Architecture Portfolio by oliviamaasdam

CONTACT EDUCATION

(641) 820 1576

maasdamo@iastate.edu

www.linkedin.com/in/olivia maasdam

2023 - present

2024 - present

2022 - present

2022 - 2023

Iowa State University

Bachelor of Architecture

Urban Studies Minor Class of 2027

ENGAGEMENT

NOMAS | Secretary

National Organization of Minority Architect Students

StratAA | Student Publication

DATUM | Student Publication

Iowa State Tennis Club Best Buddies

PERSONAL STATEMENT

Motivated and high-achieving student passionate about architecture and the way it impacts the human experience. Seeking professional experience and connections with like-minded people in the field.

EXPERIENCE

Architectural Intern | Curtis Architecture and Design

Summer ‘24

→ Produced construction documents and presentations for a single-family home addition.

→ Communicated with the client to devise design strategies

→ Utilized BIM software and modeling software to represent built and new construction.

→ Observed how project management tasks were carried out on a day-to-day basis.

SKILLSET

digital

Adobe Suite, Revit, AutoCAD, Rhinocerous 3D, Climate Studio, Grasshopper, LandKit, Sketchup, Lumion, Enscape, Twin Motion, MS Office

fabrication

laser cutting, 3D printing, model-making

soft skills teamwork, adaptability, communication

Barbara G. Laurie Student Competition | NOMA Conference

May - November ‘24

→ Developed design concepts and visualizations, ensuring alignment with project goals.

→ Produced a minute-long video to communicate the project narrative.

→ Represented NOMAS at the NOMA Annual Conference, networking with professionals and attending relevant workshops.

RECOGNITIONS REFERENCES

2022 - 2027

2025 3x

2022

George Washington Carver Scholar

Hansen Prize Competition Winner

College of Design Dean’s List

Valedictorian | Knoxville High School

Rod Curtis | Founder of Curtis Architecture & Design

(641) 660 9625

Kevin Lair | Associate teaching professor (315) 708 3395 | klair@iastate.edu

Roman Chikerinets | associate teaching professor (347) 307 4316 | romanc@iastate.edu

Architecture x Land

2025 richard f. hansen prize winner

Location —> Winterset, Iowa

Project type —> Prescribed Burn Operation

Professor —> Kevin Lair

Collaborator(s) —> Meredith Petellin

PHASE IV

To care for the land, you must be close to the land.

Native Iowan prairie has historically been maintained by fire. For thousands of years, wildfires protected the existence of the natural landscape. This fire dependent terrain, now devoid of fire because of colonial intervention, is almost unrecognizable.

Westbrook Artist’s Site hosts one of the largest areas of privately-owned prairie land left in Iowa. Now, reliant upon human interaction, the prairie can be restored through prescribed burn practicies. Through architectural interventions that adapt to the ever-changing conditions of the site, this project acknowledge the land as something animate, and is an attempt to play a small role in the shaping of the prairie.

a poem

“To care for the land, you must be close to the land”

Understanding how the landscape is truly animate leads us to uncover the unseen.

The process of understanding the world around us begins within the strata

as we peel back the layers of sediment and history

Natural alterations to a landscape we never knew, slowly being unearthed by the Anthropocene and its supernatural implications.

site east to west section collage

Untouched land, forever altered by colonial intervention. Before destructive agricultural practices, the tallgrass prairie covered the landscape in a sea of gold.

An unwavering force, dancing through the grasses

The same wind that blew through the swaths of prairie all those years ago

Grounds us in place, and is a daily reminder of what once was

What came from fire will be born again,

From the ashes, a new landscape emerges

phase I - site inquiry

Madison County, where Westbrook Artist’s Site is located, is home to many rivers and streams which carve away at the land. Their beds hold a glimpse into the geologic history of the site.

I found deposits of clay nesteled in the bed of a small tributary creek that cuts through the site. After collecting some, I was inspired by the different hues and further refined the clay into a paint form.

These swatches are a reflection on that action of digging into the earth, and to me, represent architecture’s relationship with the soil. It rises above, yet bows to the earth, a bond that must be acknowledged and engaged.

clay paint swatches

paint recipe ( using dry clay )

1 part clay

1 part wheatpaste concentrate

2 parts water

Mix all ingredients together and adjust for desired consistency

Middle River

flood plain

wooded area

prairie

anticipation

→ an intersection between burn staff and visitors

* grounding before entering the prairie

reflection

→ erosion prevention and water monitoring

* a moment held in time

animation

→ a prescribed burn outpost that shapes the landscape

* feeling the prairie

ANTICIPATION

the arrival interior rendering

collage sun condition

intersect + embed

ANTICIPATION

the arrival to the site section perspective

floor plan the arrival

REFLECTION

southern view of the creek building collage rendering

parallel + lift diagram gabion structures in the hillside

REFLECTION

reflection section perspective

reflection floor plan

prairie burn hub - during burn exterior render

ANIMATION

animation section perspective

ANIMATION

prairie burn hub - post burn exterior render

deployable burn unit assembly isometric diagams

deployable units in the field render series

diagram equipment configurations

interactive model pieces exploded isometric diagram

flowchart diagram “game” instructions

2024 NOMA BGL Design Competition

Location —> West Baltimore, MD

Project type —> Transit hub / reparative design

Collaborator(s) —> andrea muchori, hao cao, truc ngyuen, sebastian salamanca, & david doan

COLLECTERRA

The site in West Baltimore is a physical scar of racism left by the construction of the Highway to Nowhere.

The proposal exerts itself as an introduction to projected re-growth over time, by acknowledging the emptiness and vacancy. Creating a sense of belonging for past residents and future residents was a key focus in this project.

To reconnect the parcels, the yellow walkway acts as an environmental graft to the outdoor spaces and leads toward the central transit hub. Thus, bridging the American ICE building and the public makerspaces.

Lining the site are clusters of modular shading devices that can be used for various interactive programming, adding a playful quality to the green spaces.