Marcelo Joulia
- Birthdate
- 1958
- Nationality
- Argentine
- Occupation
- Architect & Designer
Marcelo Joulia is a Franco-Argentine architect, designer, and entrepreneur, born in Córdoba, Argentina, in 1958. He arrived in France in 1976 following the military dictatorship in Argentina and initially studied geography and urban planning before enrolling at the Paris-La Villette School of Architecture.
In 1991, he founded the Naço firm in Paris; the name means “intuition” in Guarani. From the very beginning, he developed a very broad vision of his profession: for him, architecture is not limited to buildings but also encompasses interior design, furniture, graphic design, scenography, and the identity of places. This holistic approach would become the firm’s signature.
Naço Architecture now has offices in Paris, Shanghai, and Buenos Aires, and operates in more than twenty countries. The firm has completed a wide variety of projects: hotels, restaurants, offices, entertainment complexes, movie theaters, sports facilities, and urban development projects. Notable projects associated with the firm include the interior design of the Olympique Lyonnais stadium, the renovation of the L’Imperator hotel, and several projects for renowned chefs.
His work is often described as free-spirited, intuitive, and multidisciplinary. He champions an “anti-style”: rather than a repetitive aesthetic, he seeks to create spaces tailored to their context, their intended uses, and the emotions they are meant to evoke.
