Ignacio G. Galán

Ignacio G. Galán is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Architecture at Barnard College, Columbia University, where he has taught since 2016. An architect, historian, and educator, his work explores how architecture mediates power, participates in societal articulation, and engages with processes of inclusion and exclusion across contexts of residence, belonging, citizenship, and kinship.

Galán's research spans three interconnected domains: the relationship between architecture and fascism (culminating in his 2025 monograph Furnishing Fascism), migration and belonging (examined in his Oslo Architecture Triennale curation and current 'Neighborliness in the Diaspora' project), and disability cultures and spatial justice (investigated in his 'Independent Living' research). His scholarly work appears in leading journals including the Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians, Journal of Design History, and Journal of Architectural Education.

His recent publications reveal a consistent focus on architecture's political dimensions, with increasing attention to disability justice and spatial politics. The 2021-2023 period saw significant output on disability architecture, including multiple articles examining the relationship between built environments and disability activism, particularly focused on bathroom design, accessibility, and interdependence.

• Tow Award for Innovative and Outstanding Pedagogy (2024)
• Faculty Design Award by ACSA (2024)
• AIANY New Practices New York Award (2025)
• Special Mention at Venice Biennale for Radical Pedagogies (2014)
• Graham Foundation Grants (2015, 2019)

Professor Galán has secured funding from the Andrew Mellon Foundation for courses on spatial inequality and received Barnard's Inclusive Pedagogy Fund support. His teaching spans undergraduate and graduate studios on housing, disability cultures, migration, and curatorial practices, often developed collaboratively with institutions like UNAM in Mexico City. Through his design practice [igg-office for architecture], he creates projects addressing belonging, diversity, and access that have been included in the Pompidou Center's permanent collection and exhibited at international venues including the Venice Biennale.