African curriculums in the 21st century require constant review to reflect the current hybridity, specificities and diversity of our society. Academics must critically understand how systemic issues like colonialism, apartheid and neoliberalism can be disrupted through Design.

Story

Profile

Born in South Africa

Denver’s is a mixed-race Professional Architect, Tertiary Design Educator and Researcher who is part of the drive towards the decolonial and digital pedagogical transformation in South Africa. As a full-time lecturer at the University of Johannesburg, he teaches design, technology and theory. Through his innovative pedagogical approach to design education, he established the Fabrication Laboratory at the Faculty of Art, Design and Architecture and is the designated Development Coordinator. His focus in education is on developing collaborative 21-century curricula and research which embraces both decolonisation and digital design methods of tomorrow. Denver was Head of the Department of Architecture from 2017 to 2021 and now pursuing a PhD in alternative and innovative pedagogies. He also has almost 20 years of practice experience in public, residential and commercial architecture and urban design.

His studies include a Masters in Urban Studies, A postgraduate degree in Architecture and undergraduate diplomas in architectural technology. He won both the Housing Development Agency and PG Bison Awards during his final year of studies. He has completed short courses in material studies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is an external examiner for architecture schools in South Africa, sits on examination panels and was invited to talk at institutions in New York, Italy and the United Kingdom. He also has a strong international network of academic peers.

Full Name: Denver M. Hendricks

Nationality: South African

Home Address: Melville, South Africa

Language: English (Primary), Afrikaans (Secondary), German (Basic)

Qualifications (1997-2004)

Bachelor of Architecture (Post-graduate)

University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South African

Bachelor of Technology (Applied Design)

Cape Peninsula University of Cape Town

National Diploma in Architectural Technology

Cape Peninsula University of Cape Town

3 year diploma with +1 additional gap year industry

Senior Certificate

Athlone Senior Secondary School

Short Courses

Predictive Multiscale Materials Design Short Course, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, June 2021

Professional Affiliations

South African Council for the Architectural Profession (SACAP), 2008 to current
Gauteng Institute For Architects (GIFA), 2012-2014, Education Committee
South African Black Technical and Allied Careers Organisation (SABTACO) 2007-2008

Awards

District Six Social Housing Competition - 2004
Best Housing Project in the National Housing Competition - 2004
Housing award for ‘the best low-income infill housing design in Brooklyn’ - 2001
Winner of the P.G. Bison Competition for Community Centre 2000

Invited Talks

“Cape Town Urban Morphology “, MEASI University, India, online presentation to master students, 2021
“Cape Town Urban Morphology “, Ozygen University, Istanbul, Turkey, online presentation to master students, 2020
“Urban Development in South Africa”, Pescara University, Pescara, Italy international student design summer school talk, 2019
“The Way we Decolonise”, New York Institute of Technology, New York, United States, 2018
“Decolonising the Curriculum”, DEFSA presentation of a draft paper on Decolonisation, Pretoria, 2017
“The Way We Decolonise“, Du- Montford University, Architecture Department, Leicester, UK, 2017
“Decolonising the Curriculum”, Nelson Mandela University (NMU) Decolonisation Seminar, a presentation on a published paper at CUMULUS to academic peers called Decolonisation in Tertiary Design Education, 2017
“Black Space”, A presentation at Studio X Dark Space Book launch Panel discussion, 2015
“XL Design in Johannesburg“, AZA Conference Presentation, 2014
“The E2 House”, A presentation at Ted X, Soweto, JHB, documenting a building designed and completed in the Innes Free Park, Sandton for a sustainability expo, 2012

Panels & Committees

Dean’s Committee, Faculty of Art, Design and Architecture, University of Johannesburg, FADA; 2017-current
Academic Qualifications Programme Committee (APQC); 2017-2021
Chair of Academic Departmental Committee (ADC); 2017-March 2021
Chair of the FADA FABLAB Committee; 2017-current
Panel member for the South African Council for Architectural Profession for Architecture (SACAP) for the council for the built environment occupational teams for strategic projects, 2019
Invited juror on the Johannesburg Development Agency, Our City, Our Block Panel, 2017
Seat on the Gauteng Institute for Architecture (Gifa) Education Committee, 2013-2014
Member of the Scientific Committee at the National Human Settlements Conference

International Academic Hosting

Professor Marcella Del Signore, Head of Urban Design at New York Institute of Technology, New York. Visit in 2018 to present at the Digital Utopia Symposium.
Erastus Abonyo, Head of the Nairobi University, Kenya. To discuss urban and housing research in the “Global South”.
Dr Matthew Barac, Research and Course Leader, London Metropolitan University, London to discuss research finding.

International Collaboration and Exchanges

Pescara University, Pescara, Italy. Attended a student summer school with four senior undergraduate students to participate in an urban design project. 2019.
Ecole Boulle University, Paris, France. Collaborative project on identity and masks called “See Me”. The collaboration exchanged paper masks. The exhibition never took place due to COVID-19 Lockdown. 2020. Collaborators, Steffen Fischer (University of Johannesburg) and Eric Dubois (Ecole Boulle).
MEASI, India; Nairobi University and Ladoke Akintola. A “South to South” collaboration on global south urbanism, housing, sustainability, and climate change. 2021

Work Experience

Junior Architect

Crisp and Raw Design Studio (PTY) LTD, Johannesburg

Jan 2016 -
Dec 2016

Office Director

Urbansoup Architects and Urban Designers (PTY) LTD, Johannesburg

Jan 2014 -
Dec 2016

Co-Director

Jakupa Architects and Urban Designers (PTY) LTD, Johannesburg

IG Architects and Urban Designers (PTY) LTD, Cape Town

ARG Cape Town

Nov 2008 -
Aug 2009

Nov 2005 -
Oct 2008

Nov 2004 -
Oct 2006

Office Director

Junior Partner

S.du Toit & J. Perrin in Association, Cape Town (vacations only)

ACG Architects and Development Planners, Cape Town

Nov 2001 -
Feb 2003

Jan 2000 -
Dec 2001

Dec 1997 -
Dec 1999

Senior Architectural Technologist

Architectural Technology Student

University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa

Soweto Architects (PTY) LTD

Spaceology Architects (PTY) LTD

since Jan 2010

Lecturer (Senior Lecture application pending); Fabrication Laboratory Founder and Development Coordinator

Head of Department: Architecture (January 2017 - March 2021)

since Jun 2021

Consultant

since Jan 2016