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David Adjaye
David Adjaye, in full Sir David Adjaye, (born September 22, 1966, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania), British-based
architect of Ghanaian descent who won international acclaim for his diverse designs and innovative use of
materials and light.

Adjaye was born to Ghanaian parents in Tanzania, where his father, a

diplomat, was stationed at the time. Because of his father’s career, Adjaye
lived in several countries in Africa and the Middle East during his youth;
the family eventually settled in London. An interest in art led him to earn a
B.Arch. from London South Bank University (1990) and an M.Arch. from
the Royal College of Art (1993). Adjaye worked at a few architectural rms
while still in school before partnering with William Russell to form Adjaye
and Russell in 1994. He started Adjaye Associates in 2000.

Adjaye’s early design projects included retail establishments, restaurants.

studios, and private residences. His work expanded to include large-scale
public buildings, such as the Idea Stores (2004, 2005)—library–
community-centre hybrids that he designed in two London
neighbourhoods—the Nobel Peace Centre in Oslo (2005), the Museum of
Contemporary Art in Denver (2007), and the Moscow School of
Adjaye, David
Management (2010). That Adjaye was selected to work on such prominent
David Adjaye, 2009.
projects at a relatively young age was unusual in the architectural world.
Ed Reeve—VIEW Pictures Ltd/Alamy
He won his most prestigious commission to date in 2009, when he was
chosen from a eld of respected architects to design the new home of the Smithsonian Institution’s
National Museum of African American History and Culture (2016), in Washington, D.C. Later in 2009,
affected by global economic recession, he was forced to restructure his rm and its debt, but he emerged
stronger than before.

Adjaye’s travels as a child allowed him to develop a heightened degree of cultural sensitivity and exposed
him to a variety of architectural styles, which he has cited as being in uences on his approach to design.
That his youngest brother needed the use of a wheelchair was also an in uence, as it caused Adjaye to
contemplate what he called the “social responsibility” of architecture. Although his designs may share
some common elements, they tend to differ widely in scope and appearance, because they are inspired by
the speci c parameters of the physical space to be occupied and the intended function of the building.
Elektra House and Dirty House (2000 and 2002, respectively, both in London)—two of the most well-known
examples of the private residences he designed—had dark exteriors, were stark and modernistic, and
provided the perfect milieu for the artists who lived in them. His Idea Stores were light, airy spaces that
were infused with a sense of vibrancy and were designed to draw the community in. Adjaye’s winning
design for the National Museum of African American History and Culture was inspired by Yoruban art and
architecture and showcased the trajectory of the African American experience against the backdrop of
other Washington, D.C., monuments and museums.

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5/2/2019 David Adjaye -- Britannica Online Encyclopedia

In the midst of designing, Adjaye found time over the course of more than a decade (1999–2010) to travel to
the capital of every African country, photographing each city. His images were published as a seven-
volume set, Adjaye Africa Architecture: A Photographic Survey of Metropolitan Architecture (2011; also
published as African Metropolitan Architecture). He also authored or coauthored several other
publications, including David Adjaye: Houses: Recycling, Recon guring, Rebuilding (2005), David Adjaye:
Making Public Buildings: Speci city, Customization, Imbrication (2006), David Adjaye: A House for an Art
Collector (2011), and David Adjaye: Authoring: Re-placing Art and Architecture (2012).

Adjaye garnered many honours and awards for his work, including the prestigious Royal Institute of British
Architects (RIBA) Bronze Medal for architectural students (1993) and the Design Miami/ Designer of the
Year award (2011). He was appointed an Of cer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2007 and was
knighted 10 years later for services to architecture.

Amy McKenna The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

CITATION INFORMATION
ARTICLE TITLE: David Adjaye
WEBSITE NAME: Encyclopaedia Britannica
PUBLISHER: Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.
DATE PUBLISHED: 18 septembre 2018
URL: https://www.britannica.com/biography/David-Adjaye
ACCESS DATE: mai 02, 2019

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