Mark Oldham, AIA, LEED AP Joins PAYETTE as an Associate Principal

This month, PAYETTE welcomes Mark Oldham, AIA, LEED AP as an Associate Principal.

At PAYETTE, our people are our primary asset. Mark joins PAYETTE with ten years of experience as a professional focused in the civic and higher education sectors. His award-winning work includes the Mattapan and East Boston Branches of the Boston Public Library, the Johnson Building Main Branch renovations for the Boston Public Library as well as buildings at Johns Hopkins and Tufts Universities. He also has expertise in performing arts spaces. In addition to his experience, Mark brings a focus on exceptional, beautiful design. Mark received his Bachelor of Arts Degree from Dartmouth College and his M.Arch from Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design.

Here, Mark shares a bit about himself.

Q: Why do you do what you do?
I like that we get to synthesize. I like that it takes a whole lot of people from all walks of life to put good buildings together. As architects, we’re very fortunate to be so involved with so many of those avenues. It feels like we’re perpetually in learning mode.

Q: What are you most excited about in regards to your new role at PAYETTE?
I’m fascinated by the impression that, despite PAYETTE’s history, it also feels like I’m joining a practice that’s still budding and very much on the ascent. Perhaps that’s a strange thing to say given PAYETTE has been an industry leader for over 50 years, yet I get a sense of a common belief the work here is getting stronger every day and the best days are still ahead. That’s contagious and exciting. As an outsider to the type of buildings we focus on at PAYETTE, I’m looking forward to absorbing the collective expertise and exploring how a foreign voice might help move things along. In what ways or directions we’ll have to see, but that challenge sounds fun.

Q: Where is your favorite place in the world?
I think it’s changing all the time. Maybe somewhere between the last one I’ve visited and the next one I’m planning to see. At the minute I think it might be Jordan. I recently got back and was blown away by the layers of civilization there – so many histories have passed through the same land, often using and reusing the same bones. Petra in the quiet of a 6AM visit is something everyone should experience.

Q: Whom do you admire?
I admire listeners. By nature I’m probably not as good at this as I wish and so respect those who do it well. It’s so powerful and takes such a quiet confidence. Whether in home life or work life, when people really listen, it’s like giving a gift to those around them. I like seeing that.

Q: What is something people would be surprised to know about you?
I’ve still got a bit of a funny accent that’s been slowly Americanized over the years, so people aren’t always sure where I’m from. I grew up in London and have spent the better part of the last two decades here in the States. This year is a big one for me as I’ve now been here longer than I was ever at ‘home’. I’m not sure how that changes things but feel like it does somehow.

Q: The sky is the limit: if you could redesign anything, what would it be?
I once worked in a Calcutta health clinic for four months. That felt good. When you finish a building and users love it that too feels good. I imagine designing something entirely beyond expectation in a context like India might be tough to beat. On a lighter note, I’d like to redesign the web interface for Gmail. I don’t understand the lack of hierarchy all over the page – it drives me crazy and can’t fathom how it’s lasted like that this long.

Q: What do you do in your free time?
I’m a traveler for sure, and can never get enough time for that. I’m also a bit of a sporting nut, more playing than watching though I have developed a strange affinity for (American) football on TV. That said, rugby is my main sport and I still try and play once a week. No doubt I’m too old for it but I love the challenge and constant reminder of just slow I’ve become!  My wife and I are about to have our first child this summer so I’m sure if you ask me this question in a few months I’ll probably have a different answer.

Q: What do you follow?
Bob Oakes, from WBUR Morning Edition. Outside of family I think it’s possible I hear his voice more than any other.