Felipe Hernandez - Böcker

The work of Homi K. Bhabha has permeated into numerous publications which use postcolonial discourse as a means to analyze architectural practices in previously colonized contexts, particularly in Africa, Asia, the Middle-East, South-East Asia and, Latin America. Bhabha's use of the concept of ‘space’ has made his work highly appealing to architects and architectural theorists. This introductory book, specifically for architects, focuses on Bhabha’s seminal book The Location of Culture and reveals how his work contributes to architectural theory and the study of contemporary architectures in general, not only in colonial and postcolonial contexts.

The work of Homi K. Bhabha has permeated into numerous publications which use postcolonial discourse as a means to analyze architectural practices in previously colonized contexts, particularly in Africa, Asia, the Middle-East, South-East Asia and, Latin America. Bhabha's use of the concept of ‘space’ has made his work highly appealing to architects and architectural theorists. This introductory book, specifically for architects, focuses on Bhabha’s seminal book The Location of Culture and reveals how his work contributes to architectural theory and the study of contemporary architectures in general, not only in colonial and postcolonial contexts.

Latin American cities have always been characterized by a strong tension between what is vaguely described as their formal and informal dimensions. However, the terms formal and informal refer not only to the physical aspect of cities but also to their entire socio-political fabric. Informal cities and settlements exceed the structures of order, control and homogeneity that one expects to find in a formal city; therefore the contributors to this volume - from such disciplines as architecture, urban planning, anthropology, urban design, cultural and urban studies and sociology - focus on alternative methods of analysis in order to study the phenomenon of urban informality. This book provides a thorough review of the work that is currently being carried out by scholars, practitioners and governmental institutions, in and outside Latin America, on the question of informal cities.

This book explores the malleability of race as a construct, one subject to continuous redefinitions in different times, cultures and places. While race has been deployed historically to establish hierarchies in a modern-colonial world, it also has acquired the capacity to challenge those hierarchies, enabling critical engagements with epistemic positions that have been excluded from univocal Eurocentric architectural narratives.The volume expands the discourse on racializing concepts and categories beyond the traditional Africa–North America axis, examining many issues that have been overlooked in the field of architecture. This broader range of topics provides for a more comprehensive understanding of how race is constructed and represented in architectural theory and practice globally.Written by an international and influential cast of contributors, the structure of the book permits a detailed revision of the most current theoretical debates on race. Each part deals with a specific challenge at a particular scale. Ultimately, the book embraces discussions about theory, urban and regional debates, architectural design at the scale of the building, history and education, exploring the concept of race in all aspects of the discipline. It is essential reading for anyone studying or working in the built environment.