Raised in seven cities across the Pacific and collaborating on projects in Europe, Asia, and the Americas as a designer, Joem Elias Sañez’s work is grounded at the intersections between the local and the global. As a professional, he appreciates the opportunities and constraints of trade expertises and material techniques unique to the intertwined locales of Site. As an architect, Sañez capitalizes on the collective knowledge of global networks while remaining embedded to a conscientious approach to design, representation, entrepreneurialism and leadership. Sañez is committed to thorough and iterative testing of ideas that channel robust forces at every scale into invention.

Sañez holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts with honors in Architecture/Landscape/Interiors and an Interdisciplinary Concentration in Sculpture & New Genres from Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles, California. He completed his Master of Architecture at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation in New York with subsequent tenures at Herzog & de Meuron and Foster + Partners.

In 2018, Sañez relocated to Singapore to open Foster + Partners’ office in South East Asia, presently working on projects in the region. In his spare time, Sañez enjoys reviewing films, reading memoirs, designing books and playing the piano.