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Dr Felipe Hernández is a Colombian-born Associate Professor of Architecture and Urban Studies at the University of Cambridge, specializing in decolonial and postcolonial practices, social housing, and urbanism in the Americas.
Dr. Felipe Hernández is an Associate Professor of Architecture and Urban Studies at the University of Cambridge, where he also directs the M.Phil. in Architecture and Urban Studies (MAUS).
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Born in Colombia and a practicing architect before his academic career, his scholarship provides a vital, critical lens on the design and practice of architecture in the Americas. His foundational work explores the profound influence of ‘coloniality’ on urban spaces, seeking out and promoting relevant approaches to design pedagogy and practice that acknowledge and address historical and social hierarchies.
His academic leadership at Cambridge is notable for breaking ground; he was the first Colombian to hold a full-time academic post in the department and the first Latin American to direct the Centre of Latin American Studies (CLAS) at the university. Dr. Hernández’s research is defined by its focus on race, gender, and socio-economic disparity in the built environment, issues he addresses through his extensive publications, including forthcoming books on Spaces of Coloniality and The Routledge Companion to Critical Approaches in Race and Architecture.
Biography
Dr. Felipe Hernández is a Colombian-born architect and a leading scholar in the field of critical architectural and urban studies. He began his career in Cali, Colombia, where he co-led the design of La Plaza de los Poetas and established his own practice, Fragmentos Studio. He furthered his education in the UK, obtaining an MA from Nottingham University with distinction, followed by a Ph.D. in Architecture from the University of Cambridge in 2003.
His move to the University of Cambridge in 2009 marked a significant professional shift, where he became an Associate Professor and a Fellow Architect and Director of Studies at King’s College. His dedication to decolonial scholarship is evident in his research, his teaching, and his administrative roles as the Director of MAUS and the former Director of CLAS. He has also established the Housing Design-Research Collaborative in Cali, Colombia, to drive alternative, contextually relevant approaches to social housing across Latin America. His monographs, such as Bhabha for Architects (2010), have been translated into multiple languages, signifying his international academic reach.
Core Profile Details
Contact and Availability
Research and Expertise
Dr. Hernández’s research program critically examines the nexus between architecture, urbanism, and ‘coloniality’ in the Americas. His work is dedicated to uncovering and challenging the persistence of colonial principles and practices within contemporary architecture and pedagogy, focusing on issues of race, gender, and socio-economic disparity.
Key Research Areas
- Decolonial and Postcolonial Practices: Seeking pertinent approaches for teaching and practicing architecture in the Americas that de-link from historical colonial hierarchies.
- Architectures and Urbanisms in the Americas: Research focusing on the modern and contemporary built environment in Latin America, particularly the Andean Region.
- Social Housing and Housing Design: Developing alternative, pertinent design approaches to social housing, especially through the Housing Design-Research Collaborative in Colombia.
- Marginal Urbanisms: Analysis of informal and formal urban development, and the spaces of inequality and conflict within cities.
Supervision and Teaching
Dr. Hernández supervises PhD students on a wide array of topics concerning spaces of inequality and conflict, and the role of design in perpetuating or disrupting historical hierarchies that exclude marginalized populations.
Teaching Responsibilities
Associated Funding and Opportunities
Dr. Hernández has played a pivotal role in creating and leading impactful research and teaching initiatives:
- Academic Leadership: Director of the M.Phil. in Architecture and Urban Studies (MAUS) and former Director of the Centre of Latin American Studies (CLAS).
- Collaborative Initiatives: Founder of the Housing Design-Research Collaborative in Cali, Colombia, focusing on social housing.
- Research Groups: Established and directed the interdisciplinary research group Cities South of Cancer (2014-2018), which involved several PhD students researching urban issues in Bogota, Buenos Aires, Jakarta, and Khulna.
Key Publications
- 2025 (Forthcoming): Hernández, F. Spaces of Coloniality. London – New York: Routledge. (Monograph)
- 2024: Hernández, F. Bhabha sobre la arquitectura. Barcelona – Reverté. (Book)
- 2024: Hernández, F. ’Latin American Architectural History: Reading Between the Lines, Opening Opportunities’, in Architectural History 66 (2023), 307–332.
- 2023 (Guest Editor): Hernández, F. ‘Race, Exploring the Modern-Colonial Legacy in Contemporary Architecture’, Ardeth 9.
- 2021 (Co-Editor): Lara, F. and F. Hernández (eds) Decolonising the Spatial History of the Americas. Austin: Center for American Architecture and Design.
- 2017 (Co-Editor): Hernández, F. and A. Becerra Santacruz (eds) Marginal Urbanisms: Informal and Formal Development in Cities of Latin America. Newcastle: Cambridge Scholar Publishing.
- 2011: Hernández, F. ‘(In)Visibility, Poverty and Cultural Change in Latin American Cities’, Harvard Design Magazine, 2.33, 66-75.
- 2010: Hernández, F. Bhabha for Architects. London – New York: Routledge. (Translated to five languages)
