In her work, Jacques questions prevailing architectural conventions, positing instead a different kind of architectural achievement and beauty - the development of the favelas of Rio de Janeiro - She explores this different kind of urban architecture through the works of an anarchist painter, sculptor and artist, Hélio Oiticica.

Post-structuralist ideas from thinkers such as Foucault, Deleuze and Derrida are also applied, such as the idea of 'natural and wild occupations'.

She asserts that the concept of a 'labyrinth' is imposed upon the favelas by outsiders who themselves find it to be a disorientating space - In contrast, inhabitants are able to fluidly travel amongst favelas' intricate pathways, exhibiting a skill and rhythm akin to the swing of a samba.