The Asia Society of Texas was founded in 1979 as a division of the Asia Society of New York in an attempt to link the state to that other important and growing region of the globe. As the organization progressed its vision through different events and venues all over the city, it realized that in order to flourish, it needed its own home base. 

In 2003, the Asia Society of Texas purchased a 2.3-acre site in Houston’s renowned museum district; the next year the block across the street was bought as the parking lot. In that same year, Yoshio Taniguchi was chosen to design the building. The center will use arts and cultural programs to promote connections of cultural understanding within the Greater Houston community.

Visitors to the center will be welcomed by a landscape that adheres to a thoughtfully executed minimalist ethic. The Front Yard includes a simple plane of ground cover and heritage oaks that frame views to the main entry and serves as a venue for special events. At the rear of the building, a grove of bald cypress forms a vertical hedge that holds the views to the second level Stone Garden.

A series of three individual gardens are located on the second level of the building. The Water Garden features a skin of water that reflects shadows from two heritage oaks and distant Houston skyline. The Stone Garden is a simple plane of gravel and vertical bamboo that serves as a backdrop to rotating pieces of sculpture at the center. The Sculpture Garden includes a sloped carpet of ground cover with stone sculptures carefully placed in composition.