THE SHORT AND THE LONG OF IT
Architect |Energy Consultant | Building Science Educator
Emily is the founder and principal of Mottram Architecture, a boutique practice specializing in new homes and renovations that are beautiful, functional, comfortable, healthy, and durable.
Emily received her Bachelor of Architecture degree from Penn State University and is currently a Registered Architect in Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania and Utah. Emily is a member of the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB), the National Association of Women In Construction (NAWIC), and the Natural Resources Council of Maine (NRCM), the state’s leading organization working to protect and preserve the environment.
An educator at heart, Emily also teaches building science and sustainable design at a local community college and has served as a consultant for projects in a secondary school trade program. She hosts the weekly podcast E3: Energy and Efficiency with Emily [HM1] and co-hosts the live-streamed BS* + Beer Show, a weekly building science show for professionals and “civilians” alike.
Emily has completed these certification programs:
· RESNET HERS Rater (https://www.resnet.us/raters/hers-raters/)
· Passive House Consultant and Designer (CPHC + D) (https://passivehouse-international.org)
· LEED AP (https://www.usgbc.org/leed)
· Maine State Energy Auditor
· Building Performance Analyst (http://www.bpi.org)
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IN THE BEGINNING
The longer version is that I’ve always been a little nerdy, a lot imaginative, and even more determined. So after three happy years of elective drafting classes in high school, when my teacher said, “Architecture school is really hard,” I responded, “Challenge accepted” and decided that this was the path for me. (Shout-out to Mr. Oatman: You had a huge impact on my life, and I thank you.)
At college, I became fascinated by looking at architecture through the lens of other disciplines. Once I began to think more holistically, I started recognizing the vital connections between seemingly unrelated subjects and architecture, from psychology, to economics, to horticulture, as I learned to see and analyze how sustainability, societal issues, human emotions, and economics all affect our communities.
Years later, I still use this interdisciplinary mindset in my own practice, where I put integrated design front and center, as this is the best way of assuring a building’s integrity and a smooth process to get there. This approach means that all of the different experts are at the table from the get-go: specialists in landscaping, architecture, building, mechanicals (AKA heating and cooling), and plumbing and electrical systems. I’ve arrived at this way of thinking because I’ve witnessed, too many times, how the traditional, siloed way of building can lead to needless frustrations and inefficiencies, difficulties that integrated design forestalls.
While in school, I also had the amazing opportunity to study abroad in Rome. I absorbed a tremendous amount in the classroom and just as much outside, soaking in architectural styles and history as I travelled all over Italy, Paris, Amsterdam, Prague, Vienna, Munich, Berlin, Brussels, and London. I know—lucky, right?
PLUNGING IN, BRANCHING OUT
In 2005, diploma in hand, I went to work for Barnes Vanze Architects in Washington, DC, where I learned about high-end residential design from a wonderful mentor, Tim Clites. After two years I moved to Maine and began working at a firm in Portland, but when the
Disastrous as this seemed at first, I decided to use this windfall of free time to start my own design firm. As I explored how I could best use my hard-won skills, I asked myself, “What does Maine need?”
This deceptively simple question set me off on an exciting and intensive study of building science, history, art, and more. I examined how we use buildings and their effect on our health, along with the environmental, financial, local, and site-specific issues that can derail a project before it even begins. The more I learned, the more I wanted to learn, and I knew I had found my true calling: designing beautiful, high-performance buildings that are not only a joy to live in, but also promote the health of their occupants—and the planet.
Fast forward to today: I have now worked on dozens of homes, including ones in a new solar community featured in Maine Home + Design, Maine Homes by Down East, Green and Healthy Maine Homes, and Fine Homebuilding[HM2] . You can find these and other articles about my work here.
OTHER HATS
Around this time, I also got involved with the Maine building science community, a dedicated group of like-minded builders, architects, and suppliers who follow similar principles of construction. We met informally to learn from one another and bounce ideas around, but when Covid-19 halted our in-person gatherings, that didn’t stop us: we decided to keep our community going by starting the online BS* & Beer Show, which I co-host. Much to our surprise, it soon started to attract people from beyond our area, and it’s now a terrific, informal platform for deep learning on ever-changing topics with guests from near and far. It’s a place where you can hear from experts, ask questions, and engage directly with other viewers. We also record all the sessions, so if you can’t see the show live, you can still watch it later. We even have our own come-one, come-all book club, a quarterly event featuring on-air discussions of thought-provoking books on building science.
In 2019, wanting to spread the word about healthy buildings and amplify the voices of the building science community, I started a podcast, E3: Energy and Efficiency with Emily, where I focus on building science, architecture, and female entrepreneurship. I host guests from a wide range of sub-disciplines and career stages, but the overarching idea is that the people who design and construct buildings succeed best when working as a team.
And last but not least of my extracurricular pursuits is championing the Pretty Good House (PGH). This overly modest moniker is short for the Pretty Damned Good House, and it’s a lot more than its name might imply. In fact, you could argue that PGH is carving out a much-needed new path in the US homebuilding sector.
PGH is an open-source framework and set of guidelines for building or renovating a home that focus both on its inhabitants and the environment—but keeps in mind that few people have pockets deep enough to achieve a “perfect” solution. The essential idea is for homeowners to work within their financial and practical constraints both to meet their own needs and do as much for the planet as possible.
ALL GOOD THINGS…
As much as I love doing all of the above, there’s more to me than designing custom homes, producing a podcast, hosting a web series, or hammering out content for the PGH. When I’m not calculating energy performance, comparing view corridors, or discussing the finer points of ventilation, you can find me hiking with our shepherd rescue, Chase, reading, kayaking, or planning my next travel adventure with my husband.
I can’t wait to see what comes next.
