The Terasaki Research Institute is a nonprofit organization founded by the late Dr. Paul Terasaki, a pioneer of modern organ transplant technology. House & Robertson acted as executive architects for the Institute’s new 15,500-sq.-ft. headquarters, completed in mid-2017 near the UCLA campus. Atelier Hitoshi Abe’s innovative design for this two-story-plus-basement facility, confined by taller buildings on two sides, brings natural light into the interior office spaces and flexible meeting areas. This was accomplished via two interior courtyards capped by translucent roofs constructed of tensioned cable structures clad with PTFE synthetic resin membranes, with polished chrome oculi at their centers. The existing historical front facade of cast-in-place concrete was updated with new finishes and a reconfigured storefront and custom-fabricated aluminum entry canopy.
The Terasaki Foundation
Design architect:Atelier Hitoshi Abe
Principal:Hitoshi Abe, Pierre De Angelis
House & Robertson Architects, Inc.
Principal:Jim House, FAIA
Senior staff:James Black, AIA; Silvija Olar, AIA; Khristeen Decastro
General contractor:Taslimi Construction
Images by:Roland Halbe