The most important thing we can do for clients is listen to them and be inspired by their visions.
Our team doesn’t limit our knowledge and expertise. What we learn on one project and in one industry we apply to another. That cross-pollination has tangible benefits and, more than that, it’s just plain fun. I particularly enjoy the goal-setting and empathy-mapping of a project kick-off. It gets me excited about the project’s impact. The most important thing we can do for clients is listen to them and be inspired by their visions. Hearing their stories deepens our understanding of their needs, wants, and desires. It’s at that moment that we become a true partner in their journey. It’s also when those hidden opportunities–the ones that will make the project truly special–start to emerge.
What's an untapped passion you'd like to devote more time to?
One untapped passion I’d like to devote more time to would be painting. I love painting but don’t ever seem to find time or make time for it. At our farmstead, I have a loft in our barn that I intend to transform into a mini-studio in the near future.
What do you appreciate about the architect-client relationship?
Working through a project, realizing a client’s vision…. and then seeing the joy when the project is complete is one of the most rewarding experiences because I then see the impact the journey has had and will have for that person going forward.
What makes Iowa unique?
It has a quiet beauty that’s difficult to explain to others. We don’t have dramatic mountain ranges or ocean breezes, but there are many beautiful things to be found in Iowa. Here are a few of my favorites:
- Counting the rolling hills in the distance as the crops ready for harvest reflect their colors back in the sunset.
- Falling asleep to the chirping of crickets, the buzz of locusts, and the croaking of frogs on a hot summer night.
- Walking to work with the clean north winter wind in my face.
- Riding my bike on RAGBRAI with 20,000 of my closest comrades.
Education
University of Kansas (BArch)
Recent Experience
Unitarian Universalist Society
UIHC Iowa River Landing
UIHC at Forevergreen Road
Service
Citizen Architect Program
US Green Building Council
Iowa City Climate Action
Johnson County 4-H
Contact
mkrieger@neumannmonson.com
(319) 248-4810
