Austin Tao

Founder, Austin Tao & Associates | Honorary President and Advisor, ATA Beijing Team | Fellow of the American Society of Landscape Architects (FASLA)

Austin Tao was born in Shanghai and moved to the United States at the age of ten. He earned a BA from the University of Illinois and a Master of Landscape Architecture from the University of Oregon. He is a Fellow of the American Society of Landscape Architects (FASLA). He began an independent professional practice in St. Louis around 1980. Austin Tao & Associates, Inc. was incorporated in Missouri on January 7, 1985.

Beginning in 2004, Mr. Tao worked with Wei Zhang and multidisciplinary teams in Beijing on projects in China. In 2008, the St. Louis practice integrated its business with The Lawrence Group; this was not a legal succession involving the Beijing company. Mr. Tao retired in 2013 and has since participated in the Beijing team only as an advisor, in honorary roles, and through selected project collaborations.

ATA ARCHITECTS & PLANNERS LTD. (北京安在建筑设计有限公司), the current Beijing operating entity, and the U.S. company Austin Tao & Associates, Inc. are independent legal entities, with no equity, subsidiary, or legal-successor relationship.

Mr. Tao served for more than fifteen years on the Board of Trustees of the Missouri Historical Society, which operates the Missouri History Museum. He was also a founding member of the Organization of Chinese Americans (OCA) and previously served as its National President. His long-term interests include history, cultural heritage, public engagement, cross-cultural exchange, and professional collaboration between China and the United States.

Practice​

• Planning
• Landscape Design

Featured Projects​

• St. Louis Gateway Mall
• Cross County Metro Link, St. Louis, MO
• Columbia Bottom Conservation Area
• St Louis Forest Park Landscape Improvement
• St. Louis Galleria Shopping Center
• Beijing Xidan Plaza Renovation
• Tianjin Vanke Dongli Lake Wetland Park
• Gingko and Rose Villa Landscape Design