prov·e·nance

/ˈprävən(ə)ns/

“the place of origin or earliest known history of something”

The most important step of your project is the first one: finding a partner who can turn ideas into a vision. It all starts with the first line drawn on paper…

Your vision, our craft, together creating places that matter.

 About us

Provenance Architecture was founded in Cedar Falls, Iowa in 2022. We are proud to live and work in the Cedar Valley and our passion is for projects local to the Waterloo, Iowa metro area.

Our mission is:

to use our God given talents

to usher others into a vision of

beautiful, productive, and impactful places

services & process

Let us serve you and your project with our listen-first approach. We pride ourselves on our ability to empathize with our clients while infusing your vision with our expertise.

We provide a variety of architectural services with an emphasis on early stage planning and creative design.

Our designs leverage an artist’s ability to observe and understand aesthetics while capitalizing on an engineer’s problem solving mind set.

Most importantly, we embrace our entrepreneurial spirit to get creative, propose projects that are feasible, and make sure everyone involved is happy with the product.

Task 1: Visioning

Take that foggy idea of a plan from your head and let us help you turn it into a vision. An architect’s most important role is to help create a vivid depiction of what could be.

task 2: design

Once a project direction is set, we develop that vision into an action plan. With experience in a wide range of projects, we are generalists who use ideas from one project type to influence another which results in unique, resourceful, and creative places that are memorable and impactful.

task 3: construction administration

We may not swing the hammers, but we know where the nails go and we work tirelessly to ensure our builder partners have the insights they need to get every detail of your project put in to place just so.

task 4: reflect

After the ribbon cutting, we don’t just leave you hanging. We want to be a committed partner that you want to use on your next project too. That means cataloging where the project met its goals so we can repeat success, and reviewing where it didn’t so we can make corrections for next time.

Our work

The work samples below illustrate our approach to design; stay nimble, get creative, and do something beautiful.

  • Historic Home

    This historic home in Waterloo, Iowa leveraged state and federal historic tax credits.

  • Kitchen

    This spread was featured in the 2025 Parade of Homes. It looks a lot different after some heavy renovation (before picture is visible in the background).

  • Bathroom

    This historic home remodel lent itself to some unique features such as a clawfoot bathtub and classic floor tile.

  • Condo Concept

    This visioning exercise helped determine a phased construction approach as well as allowed maximum nimbleness with a hand drawn concept plan.

  • Han Solo

    Yep, that’s a drawing of a science fiction character. But it’s interest in other things, like the arts, that help us bring new and creative insights to projects.

  • Church of Light

    Value drawing, pastel on black paper of Tadao Ando’s Church of Light in Japan.

  • Christ Church Lutheran

    Another value drawing, pastel on black paper of Eliel Saarinen’s church in Minneapolis.

Contact us

Whether you are an experienced builder or this is your first time taking on a project, we’re here to help. We look forward to learning more about your project.