The forthcoming International Slavery Museum in Liverpool, England has formally terminated their contract with Adjaye Associates over allegations involving its director’s misconduct with women first surfaced in a Financial Times report in the first week of July.
Adjaye had already left the larger Canning Dock redevelopment project over a year ago, though his design (with Ralph Appelbaum Associates) for the remade museum was still in tow and worth a reported £57 million (or about $72 million USD). The design, which calls for an overhaul of the existing Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. building, will still be pursued by National Museums Liverpool (NML), albeit with a different architect they will select following the rewarding of a new tender that was announced along with the cancellation.1
A spokesperson for NEOM told the AJ today (15 August) that it was 'no longer working with Adjaye Associates' on the 170km linear city project, which is under construction in north-west Saudi Arabia.
The NEOM spokesperson confirmed Adjaye Associates had previously been engaged in 'pre-concept architectural work on The Line'. But they added that, although there were ‘a number of world-leading architects ... contributing to the design of The Line ... NEOM is no longer working with Adjaye Associates’.2
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- 1. Source: Archinect
- 2. Source: Architects' Journal
Last week also one of the accusers finally came forward via Instagram with a difficult partial account of her experience after reportedly being outed. It is hard to imagine at this point the future direction of the firm, though if the fate of what's now Meier Partners is an indicator, a restructuring could be likely with the possibility of Adjaye stepping aside. (Adjaye, for his part, has denied some parts of the claims and says he will begin "seeking professional help" in order to ensure his "mistakes" do not occur again.)