SWA Group is an international landscape architecture firm established in 1957 as Sasaki, Walker and Associates in Massachusetts. The firm was founded by Hideo Sasaki and Peter Walker and established its first regional office in San Francisco in 1959. In 1973, the firm became SWA Group and became 100% employee-owned through an Employee Stock Ownership Plan. Since the 1980s, SWA Group has expanded nationally and internationally, with offices across the U.S. and in China. The firm has received over 600 awards for its projects and was recognized as the top landscape architecture firm by the American Society of Landscape Architects in 2005.

2. After years of school training,
design and idea exercises,
What’s your next step?

3. DESIGN - PLAN - BUILD - PRACTICE - TEACH

4. ABOUT SWA
ON THE BOARDS
UNDER CONSTRUCTION
RECENTLY BUILT
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LIFE @SWA

5. 1957
The parent firm of SWA Group was
Sasaki, Walker and Associates (SWA),
established in 1957 in Watertown,
Massachusetts by Hideo Sasaki and
Peter Walker.
Sasaki was chairman of the landscape
architecture department of Harvard
University’s Graduate School of Design
and Walker was one of his students
1959
In 1959, Walker opened a regional office
of Sasaki, Walker and Associates in San
Francisco.

6. 1973
In 1973 SWA became SWA Group, and
became one of the first companies on
the West Coast to be owned by an
Employee Stock Ownership Plan
(ESOP)—a vehicle that has resulted in
the company becoming 100% employee-
owned.
1980’s
SWA expanded from a West Coast firm
in the 1960s and 70s to a fully national
and international firm by the 1980s and
90s, with offices located across the
United States (and in China in the 2000s

7. 1990-2000
Our practice and philosophy have
evolved from a firm of one or two lead
principals into a collaborative,
participatory group practice involving
many seasoned and talented principals
and associates—several of whom are
recognized as among the most talented
designers and planners in the profession.
The firm’s projects have received over
600 awards, and in 2005 SWA received
the Landscape Architecture Firm Award,
as designated by the American Society
of Landscape Architects.

9. ABOUT SWA
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10. ANNING RIVER

18. DOWNTOWN CAIRO

19. Downtown Cairo|

20. Downtown Cairo|

21. Downtown Cairo|

22. Downtown Cairo|

29. NINGBO CENTRAL PARK

39. ABOUT SWA
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40. BURJ KHALIFA

41. Burj Dubai Tower
Dubai, U.A.E.
Size: 250 acres
2006~
.
The world tallest building

42. Height Comparison

43. Rejected Scheme by Other Firm

44. SITE
Site Location Map
Site Perspective
Site Context

45. WATER PETAL ROOM
4
2
RESIDENTIAL ARRIVAL ROOM
Inspiration Image 3
HOTEL ARRIVAL ROOM
Concept & Program Diagram
1
LAKEFRONT RECREATION AREA
Model Shots
1 2 3 4

46. Illustrative Landscape Plan

47. Water Terrace Fountain Blowup Model Shot
Water Terrace Fountain Section

48. Water Terrace Fountain Perspectives
Water Terrace Fountain Structural Diagram

57. ABOUT SWA
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58. ROCHESTER INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

87. BEIJING FINANCE STREET

107. CHINA WORLD TRADE CENTER

129. STANFORD UNIVERSITY

149. STANFORD UNIVERSITY - SIEPR

163. LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, PACKARD CAMPUS

186. ABOUT SWA
ON THE BOARDS
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196. ABOUT SWA
ON THE BOARDS
UNDER CONSTRUCTION
RECENTLY BUILT
STUDENTS + FELLOWSHIPS
LIFE @SWA