Kaela Burmeister's portfolio document contains the following sections: 1. Education, honors, awards and professional involvement which includes her education at Iowa State University and relevant honors, awards and professional memberships. 2. Work experience including internships in drafting, architecture and for an ecology center project. 3. A selection of project work from her coursework including a ecology school, multi-family housing in Rwanda, sanitation solutions in Rwanda, a hotel project in New York, a jewelry store project in Omaha, and a chicken coop. 4. A historic preservation project studying options for the vacant Historic Iowa State Penitentiary in Fort Madison, Iowa.

1. Kaela Burmeister | Portfolio

3. Education Honors and Awards
Proficiencies
Professional involvement Work Experience
Iowa State University Ames, Iowa
B.A.Architecture
Anticipated Graduation May 2017
Iowa State University -
Scholarship of Academic Excellence
2012-present
Honors Program
2012-2013
Dean’s List
5 Semesters 2012-2015
National Honors Society
2011-present
Fort Madison Historical Preservation Certificate
Fall 2015
Revit
InDesignPhotoshopIllustrator
Sketchup
AutoCad
Volunteer
Kaela Burmeister
P: (515)-332-6018 E: kaelab@iastate.edu Portfolio: issuu.com/kaelaburmeister
AIA
Student Membership Spring 2016
AIAS
Membership 2015-Present
iaWia - Iowa Women in Architecture
Student member Spring 2015
Climate Reality Project
Campagin Intern for Paris Negotiations
2015
Dance Marathon
Fundrasing for Iowa Children’s Hospital
2012-2014
Polar Bear Plunge
Special Olympics Fundraising
2013-2015
Hog Slat
Drafting Internship
AutoCad, Mechanical Systems - 2015
GTG
Architecture Internship
Clients, Code Studies, Documents - 2015

4. E.D.N.A Ecology Center
Multi-Family Housing
Sanitation System
SoHotel
Old Market Jewelry
Chicken Coop
Historic Preservation
Elia Zenghelis Master Class
Other Artwork
Table of Contents

5. Pages 3 to 6
Pages 7 to 10
Pages 11 to 12
Pages 13 to 16
Pages 17 to 18
Pages 19 to 20
Pages 21 to 22
Pages 23 to 24
Pages 25 to 26

6. E.D.N.A Ecology School | Ames, Iowa
302 Studio | Spring 2015
The E.D.N.A Science Center (Environmental Doorstep to Natural
Areas) stands as an educational experience for students, where
they interact and explore natural surroundings to learn about the
unique elements of ecology. The current site is surrounded by
trees with hills and a small stream allowing the nature and archi-
tecture to interact with each other. Using the surrounding trees as
inspiration, the structure of the building resembles tree branches
and the exterior shading devices resemble tree bark.
To create a unique learning experience the land was graded for
walk-ability as well as experience.There are leaning nodes along a
path that winds through woods, rock and water. At each node
there is information about what might live and grow in this area.
Children can explore and study different plants or findings in the
lab spaces in the school.
3

7. 4

8. 5

9. Sketchup to Revit
Landscape
Circulation
6

10. 7
Multi-Family Housing | Kigali, Rwanda
401 Studio | Fall 2015
Tree
Banana Tree
Agriculture
Drainage
Vehicles
Main Access
Religious
School/Rec
Market
Industrial
Local Business
Low Income
Medium Income
High Income
Enclosed space
Passageways
Unused open space
10 mi
Rwanda
Kigali
Kigali
Gikondo
Biryogo
1 mi
Rwanda is located in the central eastern
part of Africa. It is a small, but rapidly
growing country advancing in clean
water, solar power, and passive solar and
cooling systems.To begin I studied two
neighborhoods in Kigali, Biryogo and
Gikondo.These neighborhoods include
wetlands used for agriculture, schools,
businesses, and housing. Some areas are
low income while others are high
income.

11. Within these neighborhoods I specifically studied
building typologies and housing.When visiting Rwanda
I took pictures of the city’s layout and organization
and studied the building techniques used.
Visiting different neighborhoods in the city as well as
rural parts of Rwanda I decided to design two exam-
ples of housing typologies that will work in most any
neighborhood in the city.
Example of Current Building Typology
Kigali Urban Landscape
8

12. DN
UP
UP
DN
Type A is a housing unit for 2 larger families or a larger group
of people, for example college students.There are 6 bedrooms,
2 living and dining spaces, an open courtyard, and a shared
compost toilet.
Type B is a unit for 2 small families.There are 4 bedrooms, 2
dining and living spaces, an open courtyard, shared compost
toilet, and a retail or business space.
Building Example
Type A Level 2
Type B Level 1
Type B Level 2
Type A Level 19

13. Sections of the two proposed housing typolo-
gies show how the space is cooled, lit, and
used.The gutter detail shows how rain water
is collected and stored in an underground tank
for use in drinking and cooking.The materials
are also shown in the detail. Compressed mud
brick is used for the walls, compressed earth
for the flooring, bamboo and papyrus is used
for the window screens and clay tiles are used
for the roof.These materials are all found
locally and each home is able to be built by the
people.This promotes jobs, pride in communi-
ty and personal work, and sustainable housing
for low income families in dense areas of
Kigali. Type B Section
Type A Section
Gutter and Water Storage Detail
12

14. Sanitation | Kigali, Rwanda
401 Studio | Fall 2015
During our visit to Rwanda we participated in a three
day workshop with architecture students at the Uni-
versity of Rwanda.This workshop explored a solution
for the current sewage and sanitation system in low
income neighborhoods.
Currently these people dig pits for their toilets.When
the pits are full they cover them and dig a new one.
The current systems causes many issues in water
contamination as well as contamination in agriculture.
It also takes up valuable space for future development.
Our drawings show the existing site sections and
systems within these areas as well as our proposed
solution.
The drawings on the right illustrate the topography of
two low-income neighborhoods in Kigali, Gikondo and
Nyabisindu.The center of the hills is the strip of wet-
lands used for agriculture.The diagrams show how the
pit latrines effect the ground water that is used for
crops as well as for drinking.
The proposed solution was to implement a community
bio-gas system. A pit latrine could be equipped with a
removable tank that would be emptied regularly into
the ventral bio-gas tank.The waste would be used for
electricity to power a community kitchen inviting
people to be more social and connected within a
neighborhood. Building a sense of community would
help build personal pride and satisfaction in individual
homes and communities.
11

15. Communication
Mapping
Collaboration
Urbanization and Devlopment
10

16. 13
SoHotel | New York New York
302 Studio | Spring 2015
SoHo NewYork is an area of high end boutiques. It is the
place of destination of many traveling to NewYork City. I
have proposed a hotel with ground level retail, a lower level
night club, over 120 rooms, and an interior green courtyard
that offers a beautiful view found nowhere else in the city.

17. 3rd-6th Levels
West Section
The lower level has a night club as well as storage space
to maximize property usage, room space, and to draw
guests in from all areas of NewYork City.The ground
level houses two to three different businesses keeping
the store front street level consistent.The hotel lobby
consists of a dining and waiting area as well as handi-
capped accessible rooms.The 3rd through 8th level offer
111 more rooms.The interior courtyard stretches
throughout the building giving the experience of being
away from the city.This green courtyard filled with
plants seems to spill onto the exterior with a green roof
and living wall feature near the hotel’s entrance.
14
Lower Level Ground Level 2nd Level 3rd-6th Levels 7th Level 8th Level

18. 15
Lobby Rendering
Night Club Rendering

19. Lighting Design
Effecient Design
Code and Zoning Laws
16

20. 15
Old Market in Omaha is home to many artisans as
well as historic buildings.The Old Market Jewelry
Store is a new building with a more traditional appear-
ance.The exterior brick matches the context while
large store front windows show off the handmade
jewelry in a more modern way.
17
Old Market Jewelry | Omaha, Nebraska
202 Studio | Spring 2014

21. Artisan and Craft
Infill
Integrated Site and Design
The first floor houses the show room, a consult-
ing and design space, as well as an artisan work-
space for on site jewelry crafting.The upper level
serves as an apartment for a couple or small
family.There is plenty of space for entertaining as
the Old Market area is known for its night life.
To light this narrow building there are light tubes
that go through the center of the building that
bring sunlight into the middle of this infill build-
ing.The large store front windows also bring in a
lot of light into the front store show room.
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22. 19
Chicken Coop | Ames, Iowa
201 Studio | Fall 2013
Chicken coop is perfect for raising chickens as a hobby or
in town in a smaller space.
The main focus in this project was joints and proper
ventilation. Chickens need fresh air but if there is too
much of a draft they will not live well or produce well.To
solve this issue the side panels are plywood with slits cut
into them. Over the plywood 2 x 4 peices were cut and
weaved together with wire to create a protective cover
that blocked wind but still allowed enough air for proper
ventilation.The front doors also have three holes with
wire to allow sunlight to pass through as well as extra
ventilation.

23. 20

24. 21
Historical Preservation | Historic Iowa State Penitentiary
| Fort Madison, Iowa
Fall 2015
The Historic Iowa State Penitentiary was
recently vacated and is now sitting vacant in
Fort Madison Iowa.This is Iowa’s oldest and
longest running penitentiary and is now being
looked at for historic preservation and resto-
ration.
With 3 other students we went to visit Fort
Madison and were asked to help propose a
plan for the future of this building.We attend-
ed a town hall meeting and spoke with the
community members to understand their
wants and visions for this prison.
“ May have three to four natural air e

25. 22
and
To further our understanding of our client
we looked at the demographics of Fort
Madison, what is and has been done recently
in terms of community and regional planning
as well as historical preservation.
We advised a starting plan to mothball the
prison for the winter and in the spring begin
raising money to help fund renovations for
the prison.
Some of the final desires and proposals we
had were as follows:
Music festivals in the grounds
Mud Run-Cop and Convict
Ghost tours
Experiential tours- a con or a guard
Brewery
Convention or community space
From this list we were able to list possible
tax credits and easements for Fort Madison
to use.They have taken our advice and have
moved to raise more awareness and publici-
ty about this prison and its upcoming reno-
vations.

26. 23
Elia Zenghelis Master Class
Spring 2016
Le Corbusier's Domino principle offered an alterna-
tive view of architecture. Architecture could be
experienced by all, not just the elite.The exteriors
could also hold a great aesthetic without the expen-
sive materials or expertise as demonstrated by
Lissitzky. Lissitzky's Proun used color, forms, and
textures to express not only beauty but also meaning
relating to the people. Prouns remove objectivity
from art and in this sense it becomes universal.
Through these modern works the "public" can rise
with a "horizontality" that architecture could not
previously provide.As already pointed out by many,
that Le Corbusier's domino is like "a pixel in the
image of a city", and for us each pixel through its
inhabitant takes a new form and meaning because of
the incredible flexibility and adaptability of the
Domino.This is one of the highest egalitarian
achievements of architecture.

27. 24

28. 25
Pen and Ink Still Life Charcoal Still Life
Other artwork

29. 26
Abstract Model Photography

30. 27
Kaela Burmeister | Portfolio
Ph: 515-332-6018 Email: kaelab@iastate.edu