Luis Duno-Gottberg
Luis Duno-Gottberg is a Venezuelan academic and professor at Rice University, where he holds the Lee Hage Jamail Chair in Latin American Studies. His research focuses on Caribbean and Latin American culture, visual culture, race, and political violence. Luis is the author and editor of several works examining modern slavery in the Americas, mestizaje in Cuba, and the cultural representations of disasters and incarceration in Latin America.
Early life and education
Duno-Gottberg was born and raised in Venezuela to Estela Gottberg, a neuroscientist and Pedro Duno, a philosopher. He completed his undergraduate studies at the Universidad Central de Venezuela, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Literature in 1994, graduating summa cum laude.Afterward, he pursued graduate education at the University of Pittsburgh in the United States, earning a Master's degree in Latin American Literature in 1996. He also completed a Doctoral Certificate in Cultural Studies. In 2000, Duno-Gottberg earned his Ph.D. in Latin American Literature at the University of Pittsburgh.
Career
Duno-Gottberg's academic career spans multiple institutions in both Venezuela and the United States, with contributions in teaching, research, and academic administration. He has served as a juror for several international literary and professional competitions, including the Latin American Studies Association's Venezuelan Section Prize in 2011, the Rómulo Gallegos International Literary Prize in Venezuela in 2013, the José Donoso International Literary Prize in Chile in 2022, and the Latin American Studies Association's Fernando Coronil Prize for Venezuelan Studies in 2022. In addition to his academic work, Duno-Gottberg has co-curated the exhibition "La Furia del Viento", which showcases over 120 years of photography depicting earthquakes and hurricanes. The exhibition, held at the Fototeca de Cuba, aimed to explore the intersection of photography, disaster, and resilience.2000-2008
After completing his Ph.D. in the United States, Duno-Gottberg returned to Venezuela and joined the faculty at Universidad Simón Bolívar. He taught there from 2000 to 2003, where his courses focused on Latin American literature and cultural theory. In 2003, Duno-Gottberg accepted a position at Florida Atlantic University, where he served as Associate Professor and Director of Caribbean and Latin American Studies. He also chaired the Comparative Literature program during his tenure and remained there until 2008.2008-present
Duno-Gottberg has been a professor at Rice University since 2008, where he became a full professor in 2019. He has also held several administrative positions at Rice, serving as Department Chair of Spanish, Portuguese, and Latin American Studies from 2016 to 2020. Additionally, Duno-Gottberg served as Founding Master of Duncan College from 2009 to 2015, and Magister of Baker College from 2017 to 2023. In 2025, he was appointed founding Magister of Chao College at Rice UniversityNotable works
Duno-Gottberg has authored and edited a number of books and scholarly articles mainly on Latin American and Caribbean culture, race, and politics.Books
Albert Camus, Naturaleza: Patria y ExilioSolventar las diferencias: La ideología del mestizaje en Cuba- ''La humanidad como mercancía: Introducción a la esclavitud en América y el Caribe ''
Edited volumes
Carceral Communities: Troubling Prison Worlds in 21st Century Latin America La derecha como autoritarismo en el siglo XXI ''''.The Films of Arturo Ripstein: The Sinister Gaze of the World La politica encarnada. Biopolítica y Cultura en la Venezuela Bolivariana Haiti and the Americas Submerged. Sumergido. Alternative Cuban Cinema Miradas al margen. Cine y subalternidad en América Latina Imagen y Subalternidad. El cine de Víctor Gaviria''Articles
Transaction & Transition: Photographing Change in Contemporary Cuba- ''Geografías del miedo en el cine venezolano contemporáneo ''