Davis architect Maria Ogrydziak, whose designs include the Davis Food Co-op building (pictured) on G Street downtown, was born in Stockholm to Estonian parents, lived in Taiwan for two years while growing up, and began to make her mark as an architect when she recreated a gray classroom at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology — her alma mater — “to be more exciting, more inspiring.” Architectural faculty supported her, she says, MIT planners were apprehensive, and the outcome helped her win election as student body president the next year.
Today on Davisville we talk about housing, architecture, designing in Davis, and the influence of California's Central Valley on her work. It's no accident that a big tomato sculpture sits in front of the Co-op.
Ogrydziak is also part of Yolo Community Builders, and last appeared on Davisville in June 2025 with YCB Executive Director Bill Pride.
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