SAW is a transdisciplinary design firm, operating at the nexus of architecture, landscape, and urban design.
This mix allows us to work across scales (from the tactile object to the city) and timelines (from the immediate to the ecological) at the onset of a project. We work to identify the blind spots between disciplines and take advantage of the hidden opportunities therein. We believe in the transformative power of good design, in the inextricable relationship between building and context, and in the vital role the built environment plays in the development of community. We view design as a collaborative, research based process, and work closely with clients to better understand their needs and advance their goals.
Dan Spiegel, AIA
Founding Partner, Principal
Dan received a Master of Architecture from the Harvard University Graduate School of Design and B.A. in Public Policy from Stanford University. Prior to founding SAW, Dan worked for a number of leading architecture offices in New York, Beijing, and Boston. He currently teaches architecture at UC Berkeley and California College of the Arts (CCA) and has been an invited design critic at several schools of architecture, including Harvard University, Rhode Island School of Design, and California College of the Arts. Dan is a licensed architect in the states of California and Hawaii.
Dustin Stephens, Principal
With over twenty years of design-build experience on award winning and internationally published projects, Dustin brings a uniquely balanced skill set of design and technical construction expertise. In 2016, Dustin was recognized nationally as an Emerging Professional at the American Institute of Architects. Dustin has previously worked in the offices of the Miller | Hull Partnership and Mobile Office Architects; and received a Master of Architecture from Harvard University and BA in Architecture from University of Washington. Dustin holds Architecture licenses in Washington and Oregon.
Jeremy Ferguson, Associate
Jeremy received his Master of Architecture from the University of California at Berkeley where he was the recipient of The Mario Ciampi Art in Architecture Award demonstrating outstanding artistic merit. Originally from Hawai’i, he received his his Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Design from the University of Hawai’i at Manoa before moving to the Bay Area. His other professional experience includes positions at MODEM in Oakland, Randolph Designs in San Francisco, Dean Sakamoto Architects in Honolulu, and the National Disaster Preparedness Training Center at the University of Hawai’i. Jeremy is a licensed Architect in California.
Megan McConnell Megan received her Master of Architecture from the University of California Berkeley where she was awarded the Mario Ciampi Art in Architecture Award for outstanding artistic merit. She also received the John K. Branner Traveling Fellowship to conduct independent research on ways in which paved surface has been rendered visible across decommissioned airfields. Prior to her graduate studies, she earned a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Sciences from the University of Michigan.
Shinji Miyajima Shinji is an international designer from Japan and received his Master of Architecture from Rice University and Bachelor of Science in Architecture from the University of Cincinnati. Prior to joining SAW in January 2021, he worked at architecture and architectural lighting design offices in New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Dallas and Houston. Shinji is a Licensed Architect in California.
Founding Partner, Principal
Dan received a Master of Architecture from the Harvard University Graduate School of Design and B.A. in Public Policy from Stanford University. Prior to founding SAW, Dan worked for a number of leading architecture offices in New York, Beijing, and Boston. He currently teaches architecture at UC Berkeley and California College of the Arts (CCA) and has been an invited design critic at several schools of architecture, including Harvard University, Rhode Island School of Design, and California College of the Arts. Dan is a licensed architect in the states of California and Hawaii.
Dustin Stephens, Principal
With over twenty years of design-build experience on award winning and internationally published projects, Dustin brings a uniquely balanced skill set of design and technical construction expertise. In 2016, Dustin was recognized nationally as an Emerging Professional at the American Institute of Architects. Dustin has previously worked in the offices of the Miller | Hull Partnership and Mobile Office Architects; and received a Master of Architecture from Harvard University and BA in Architecture from University of Washington. Dustin holds Architecture licenses in Washington and Oregon.
Jeremy Ferguson, Associate
Jeremy received his Master of Architecture from the University of California at Berkeley where he was the recipient of The Mario Ciampi Art in Architecture Award demonstrating outstanding artistic merit. Originally from Hawai’i, he received his his Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Design from the University of Hawai’i at Manoa before moving to the Bay Area. His other professional experience includes positions at MODEM in Oakland, Randolph Designs in San Francisco, Dean Sakamoto Architects in Honolulu, and the National Disaster Preparedness Training Center at the University of Hawai’i. Jeremy is a licensed Architect in California.
Megan McConnell Megan received her Master of Architecture from the University of California Berkeley where she was awarded the Mario Ciampi Art in Architecture Award for outstanding artistic merit. She also received the John K. Branner Traveling Fellowship to conduct independent research on ways in which paved surface has been rendered visible across decommissioned airfields. Prior to her graduate studies, she earned a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Sciences from the University of Michigan.
Shinji Miyajima Shinji is an international designer from Japan and received his Master of Architecture from Rice University and Bachelor of Science in Architecture from the University of Cincinnati. Prior to joining SAW in January 2021, he worked at architecture and architectural lighting design offices in New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Dallas and Houston. Shinji is a Licensed Architect in California.
Megumi Aihara, ASLA, PLA
Founding Partner, Principal
Megumi has nearly twenty years of professional experience creating landscapes, big and small. Prior to joining SAW, Megumi was a Senior Project Manager at Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates, and a Landscape Architect with Andrea Cochran Landscape Architecture. Megumi received a Master of Landscape Architecture from the Harvard University Graduate School of Design and a B.A. in Visual Arts from Brown University. She is an Adjunct Professor of architecture at California College of the Arts (CCA). Megumi is a licensed Landscape Architect in the states of California and Hawaii.
Founding Partner, Principal
Megumi has nearly twenty years of professional experience creating landscapes, big and small. Prior to joining SAW, Megumi was a Senior Project Manager at Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates, and a Landscape Architect with Andrea Cochran Landscape Architecture. Megumi received a Master of Landscape Architecture from the Harvard University Graduate School of Design and a B.A. in Visual Arts from Brown University. She is an Adjunct Professor of architecture at California College of the Arts (CCA). Megumi is a licensed Landscape Architect in the states of California and Hawaii.
Avery Sell, Associate Avery is a landscape designer educated at the Pennsylvania State University Stuckeman School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture where he received an ASLA Student Honor Award and was named the 2014 Student Marshall. He brings to every project ideas that blend the mundane and the extraordinary, social science and sustainability, and past and future histories. Prior to moving to San Francisco, Avery worked in Philadelphia as a creative consultant, an artist’s assistant, and as a project manager at David Rubin Land Collective.
