Satoshi Teshima, AIA

Adept at tapping into his keen sense of social responsibility to deliver designs that create a sense of place, Satoshi Teshima, AIA, is committed to enhancing the human experience through good architecture. At the forefront of the profession, his empathic leadership is a force and his engagement with the wider community includes mentoring that ranges from middle school students to emerging professionals.

An associate vice president at HGA Architects and Engineers in Los Angeles, Teshima develops design solutions that not only fully integrate the client’s functional needs but also reflect their missions and transform the lives of users. A holistic approach to sustainability is a fundamental consideration of all of his projects. His work has been widely celebrated with local and national design awards, most recently the National SCUP/AIA-CAE for Excellence in Architecture for a New Building award and the USGBC|LA Project of the Year Award for the LEED Platinum Los Angeles Harbor College Science Complex. The project, a 71,800-square-foot, three-story complex in Wilmington, California, unites the college’s once-scattered science programs in a flexible learning environment and takes its cues from biology to achieve sustainable results. Teshima, who was pivotal in winning the project through a design/build competition, led all design phases, including stakeholder and user meetings, while coordinating the design and construction team.

In Bangkok, his design for a new women’s and children’s hospital will bring a 24-story tower to a tight urban brownfield site in the heart of the city when it is completed next year. The project’s diagnostic and treatment floors, totaling more than 315,000 square feet, are enriched by eight inpatient floors with 200 beds, a sky garden, food services, and rooftop play areas.

Supported by many thoughtful mentors throughout his young career, Teshima is now eager to share his knowledge with others. He is a regular guest critic and lecturer at East Los Angeles College, Pasadena Arts Center, and Santa Monica College. Working to foster a culture of inspiration and encouragement in his firm and beyond, he is a mentor for more than a dozen young colleagues and is involved in Spark, a national program that focuses on mentorship for students in grades 7 to 9 from underserved communities.

Possessing all the tools a great architect must have to excel, Teshima’s contributions to the built environment have elevated it considerably. His sensitive approach creates a collaborative environment that allows projects to achieve greatness regardless of scale, prestige, or budget.