Bio of Kat Katsma + Focus of Talk
Kat Katsma (BLA Illinois 2011) trained in both landscape architecture and writing, and she loves the challenges both disciplines provide. After graduating from the BLA program at Illinois with a Minor in East Asian Languages and Cultures, Katsma completed the MLA program (2013) at the University of Sheffield (Sheffield, UK), where she had spent a study abroad semester in Fall 2010.
On returning to US, Katsma took a position not with a professional design firm but instead as a writer/editor at Landscape Architecture Magazine. During the subsequent four years, she researched, wrote, edited, and designed layouts for articles; managed and wrote the magazine’s blog and social media; curated landscape architecture-related news for The Landscape Report, sent twice-weekly; and connected with other writers and professionals to develop content.
In this talk, Katsma will share insights about her experience at Landscape Architecture Magazine and how that proved critical to understanding the diverse landscape profession.
Katsma won the 2017 Bradford Williams Medal from the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) for excellence in landscape architecture-related writing. Since 2019, she has worked as a landscape designer at Kemora Landscapes in Chicago. Her to approach to landscape, writing, and life has been richly influenced by travel and living abroad.
The Projects in Practice series of talks by alumni-practitioners is made possible with support from the Visiting Practitioner Fund in the Department of Landscape Architecture.
For more information about this and other events in our spring 2023 series, please contact Prof. David L. Hays.