Cara Cragan is an award-winning designer who has worked at Rockwell Group, Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, Gehry Partners, and Salvatore Ferragamo. A graduate of the Yale School of Architecture, with a B.A. in English and Studio Art from Vassar College, Cara has led a diverse range of project types: museums, restaurants, retail, hotels, residential, workspace, products, furniture, and mixed-use.

Prior to launching her own practice in 2017, Cara was a Studio Leader at Rockwell Group in New York City from 2014-2016.  Working closely with David Rockwell, master of spectacle, Cara led the design of the new world headquarters of a Fortune 50 company, a medical marijuana dispensary, and an avant-garde immersive theater project, in addition to residential and hospitality projects. 

At Yale, Cara studied with Zaha Hadid and Frank Gehry, both masters of form.  Frank recruited Cara to work with him in Los Angeles as a designer, project architect, and project manager from 2000-2009.  Collaborating with Frank and his partners, Cara led the design for cultural institutions, hotels, restaurants, exhibitions, and workspaces, as well as product design. Clients included Art Gallery of Ontario, Related Companies, Mandarin Hotel, Saks Fifth Avenue, Corcoran Gallery, MARTa Herford Museum, and Frank.

Cara moved from Los Angeles to New York City in 2009 to work for the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation. As the Director of Architectural Projects, Helsinki and Abu Dhabi, Cara oversaw the design of the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi building by Frank Gehry, working collaboratively with the foundation’s partners: Abu Dhabi Tourism and Cultural Authority (TCA Abu Dhabi) and Tourism Development and Investment Corporation (TDIC). For the Guggenheim Helsinki project, Cara developed, coordinated, and oversaw the architectural competition for the proposed museum, which was the largest architectural competition in history.

Several years ago, Cara and her husband bought a small old estate in upstate New York as a weekend escape from New York City.  She renovated and decorated the Victorian main house, happily collaging feminine and masculine aesthetics via historic and contemporary design motifs. She embraced gardening and foraging, dazzled by the power to create.  Morphing together her love of nature, art and architecture, Cara continued her exploration, combining a cottage and a carriage house into a studio for herself, nicknamed “Dollhouse” featuring a large window wall looking into a wooded valley.

Cara thrives with projects that cross typologies and, by listening carefully and working collaboratively, brings an unexpected and delightful angle to solutions.