Studio VARA
San Francisco-based firm providing architecture and interior design services.
Company facts
- Founded
- 2013
- Employees
- 15
- Headquarters
- United States
- CEO
- Christopher Roach, Maura Fernández Abernethy
- Type
- Private
About
Studio VARA was founded in 2013 by principals Maura Fernández Abernethy and Christopher Roach, two architects who envisioned a practice that treats architecture as both a material craft and a discipline grounded in ideas. Operating from San Francisco, California, the firm has developed into a multidisciplinary design practice working at the intersection of architecture, urbanism, and interior design. The name 'VARA' refers to a Spanish and Portuguese unit of linear measure that was used to create San Francisco's street grid - one city block is typically 100×150 vara - connecting the practice to the city's urban fabric. Over more than a decade, Studio VARA has built a reputation for delivering projects that weave together architecture, interiors, furnishings, and landscape into seamless, integrated wholes. The firm has been recognized for residential, multi-family, workplace, and educational projects, earning accolades such as Forbes' America's Best-In-State Residential Architects list. Deeply committed to sustainability, the practice approaches every project as an opportunity to serve people, place, and planet simultaneously, blending ecological intelligence with design excellence.