Since 2000, Carla Juaçaba developed her independent practice of architecture and research-based in Rio de Janeiro. Her office is currently engaged in both cultural programs and private projects. After graduating she worked on the Atelier House, Rio Bonito House, Varanda House, Santa Teresa House, and exhibition designs.
The ephemeral Pavilion Humanidade 2012 was conceived with the theater director Bia Lessa and built for the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development in 2012. Carla Juaçaba is constantly part of the academic and teaching realms, research studies, and Lectures: lecture at Harvard GSD in 2018; lecture at Columbia University GSAPP in 2013, and Academia di Architettura di Mendrisio in 2017, among others. At IUAV-Venezia she did a workshop in 2014 and 2020 where she won the prize for “best studio for public space projects”; She was Jury at BIAU Bienal Ibero Americana in Madrid 2012 and 2019. In 2022 she is invited to be the president of the jury of the Simon Architecture Prize organized by Fundació Mies van der Rohe, Barcelona.
She won the first edition of the international prize ArcVision Women and Architecture 2013 in Italy, and the first prize of AREA Architectural Review Emerging Architecture Award 2018.
She was invited to Venice Architecture Biennale 2018 with the Ballast project, curated by Grafton Architects. And built one of the Vatican Chapels for the Holy See Pavilion, curated by Francesco Dal Co, which is now part of the Italian heritage.
She was recently invited by curator Hans Ulrich Obrist for the book Brazilian interviews vol.2, for CATALOGUE 4.5, and for the book 140 Artists’ Ideas for Planet Earth, and for the SIZA TALKS, at Fundação Serralves.
In 2022 she did an installation for the Openhouse Geneve exhibition with the project “Fil d´air”, and in Portugal for the project “First Stone” at Museu do Coche in Lisbon.
She is now living in Paris, teaching at Mendrisio Accademia in Switzerland since 2019, nominated as a full professor in 2023.
She is currently a Ph.D. student at ETSAM-UPM-Madrid.
Recently the model of the Vatican chapel is part of the collection of the Musée national d'art moderne de Centre Pompidou.