Renowned British-Ghanaian architect David Adjaye is making a calculated return to public life two years after being accused of sexual assault and harassment by three former female employees. Through a series of interviews, lectures, and public appearances, Adjaye appears determined not to quietly exit architecture's main stage, raising questions about how the profession will respond to his comeback attempt.
The architecture world was stunned in 2023 when the Financial Times published a detailed investigation featuring allegations of sexual misconduct against Adjaye from three former female employees, including claims of sexual assault. The accusations came just two years after Adjaye received the prestigious RIBA Royal Gold Medal in a star-studded ceremony that included video messages from singer Bono and former President Barack Obama. Adjaye vehemently denied all allegations, though the Financial Times stood by its reporting.
In a recent interview with Architectural Record editor-in-chief Josephine Minutillo, Adjaye made his intentions clear: "I have a lot to say in architecture and I hope that I'm given that opportunity." The interview was conducted to mark the completion of three major museums designed by Adjaye Associates in the United States – the first major projects completed since the allegations became public. While Architectural Record stated the interview was neither "an endorsement" nor "an effort to brush aside or minimize the severity of the accusations," Adjaye used the platform to question his accusers' accounts.
"In light of the cold facts of what this thing was, it feels as though people are making it out to be that something more has happened than allegations," Adjaye told the magazine. "And we live in a world where this is now a thing." He went further in a subsequent podcast interview with critic Tim Abrahams on Superurbanism, calling the initial Financial Times reporting "deeply unfair" and claiming there "wasn't an interest in hearing my side of the story."
Adjaye characterized his situation as being "caught in a sort of version of the MeToo slam," though he did not specify what he believed was inaccurately reported or provide substantive additional information. At the time of the original allegations, numerous publications, including Dezeen, reached out to Adjaye for comment but received no response beyond his statement to the Financial Times.
While denying the specific accounts of his accusers, Adjaye has admitted to having relationships with each of the three women while he was married. "I am ashamed to say that I entered into relationships which though entirely consensual, blurred the boundaries between my professional and personal lives," he stated at the time. His characterization of "deeply unfair" reporting echoes criticism made by Adjaye Associates London CEO Lucy Tilley, who described the investigation as "really unfair" and said "there are two sides to a story."
Adjaye has emphasized that no criminal charges have been brought against him following the allegations. According to the Financial Times' original reporting, one woman reported an alleged assault that occurred in South Africa in mid-2019 to Ghanaian police but was told they lacked jurisdiction to pursue a criminal investigation in another country. She later made a criminal complaint to South African police in 2021 about the same incident, which police confirmed receiving but provided no additional information about. Notably, Adjaye does not appear to have brought legal action against the Financial Times over its reporting.
Despite the serious nature of the allegations, some architectural media outlets seem to have returned to business-as-usual coverage of Adjaye and his studio. Design magazine Abitare published an interview focused on his upcoming projects without mentioning the misconduct allegations, while UK publication Building Design covered a pavilion by his studio in Barbados, complete with quotes from Adjaye, also making no mention of the accusations.
Adjaye has outlined his strategy for dealing with the crisis, describing how he removed himself from public view after the Financial Times piece and waited to "let the wave go over." "What can I do?" he said. "You can't fight those kinds of social waves, all you can do is go underwater. Wait, let the wave go over and hope there's something when you come up." Notably, he did not attend the openings of his recent museum projects in the United States, leading the New York Times to observe: "A star architect's buildings soar. He's nowhere to be seen."
The architect has steadily increased his public presence through speaking engagements worldwide. In March, he spoke at the AIA International Spring Conference 2025, followed by a guest lecture at AM University's school of architecture in Texas in April. He delivered the keynote lecture at Construmat in Barcelona in May, taught a course on spiritual architecture at Yacademy in Italy in June, and spoke at Climate Week NYC in September. Later this month, he is scheduled to be the keynote speaker for Indian architecture festival FOAID in New Delhi.
Adjaye also received the Mario Pani award from the Faculty of Architecture of the Universidad Anáhuac México earlier this year, an honor previously awarded to renowned architects Richard Rogers and Zaha Hadid. These developments suggest that Adjaye is far from being "cancelled" and is actively working to rehabilitate his public image.
However, not everyone in the architecture community is ready to move on. Platform to Protect Whistleblowers in Africa, which provided legal assistance to the women who accused Adjaye of misconduct, has urged the profession not to forget the allegations. "The architecture world must never forget the immense courage of the women who spoke out against David Adjaye," said project officer Gemma-Maé Hartley in a statement to the New York Times. "Their whistle-blowing in the face of serious risks must be met with recognition, meaningful accountability and stronger oversights to ensure this never happens again."
With no definitive legal resolution seemingly forthcoming, Adjaye's attempted return to prominence will serve as a test of the architecture profession's conscience and values. The key questions remain: Will he be fully re-accepted by the architectural establishment? Will prestigious commissions start flowing again? Or has his reputation been permanently damaged? "I hope that this is not the last of David Adjaye working in the US," he told Architectural Record, signaling his determination to continue his career despite the cloud of allegations that continues to follow him.
