Gabriela Maguder-Castro

Gabby joined Centerbrook in early 2026 with a strong sense of familiarity and belonging. Raised in nearby Westbrook in a Spanish-American household, she spent summers in the Galicia region with her mother’s family, drawn to its energetic public life, walkable streets, lush mountains, natural beaches, and vibrant culture. In her teenage years, the Connecticut shoreline paled in comparison to afternoons lounging on the Ria de Arousa, but she now appreciates its stillness and quiet landscape. The dichotomy of these two places, and her experiences within them, shapes how she understands the role architecture plays in bringing people together.

Gabby gravitated toward making and visual expression, experimenting with different art forms and materials, unknowingly developing an intuition for design. She earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Architecture, with a minor in Architectural History, from the Savannah College of Art and Design. Its art-centered curriculum stirred her creative voice and introduced her to architecture as both an artistic and technical pursuit. During her studies, Gabby was particularly drawn to the temples and tea houses of East Asia and the stories they tell.

Gabby’s senior capstone project, The Mindful Nest, proposed a wellness and gathering space on the site of an abandoned amphitheater on Jekyll Island, Georgia. Informed by conversations with locals, she sought to preserve the site’s wildness while reintroducing a new place for shared experience and mind-body connection. Organized as a circular form that frames the landscape at its center, the project created a setting for reflection, meditation, and community.

Before joining Centerbrook, Gabby worked on residential and adaptive reuse projects in Connecticut and in Spain, where she contributed to site documentation, programming, and early design development during an internship. Her time back in Spain further connected her architectural interests with her heritage while also exposing her to the country’s construction techniques.

Gabby values Centerbrook’s breadth of work and our emphasis on thoughtful, human-centered design, as well as our office’s welcoming culture. Outside of architecture, Gabby enjoys photography, yoga, dancing with friends, and collaging.