Archinect - News

Vermont's Shelburne Museum formally cut ties with Adjaye Associates over sexual misconduct allegations

2023-07-14T10:27:00-04:00

Adjaye Associates’ involvement with Vermont’s Shelburne Museum has ended as the institution is now looking to distance itself from the firm two months after its embattled founder was announced to lead the design of an important $12.6 million extension project in May.

The move comes amidst a torrent of project cancellations, voluntary withdrawals, and other relinquishing measures that followed accusations of abuse and misconduct on the part of David Adjaye, in addition to further details of a “toxic work environment” at his firm.

“The recent allegations of sexual misconduct leveled against David Adjaye, and his admission of inappropriate behavior, are incompatible with our mission and values, which left the museum with no alternative but to immediately sever ties with the architect and his firm,” the museum’s CEO Thomas Denenberg said in a statement to the media. “We remain committed to moving forward with the project and the many other partners and collaborators who have been invol...

UK architect banned after making antisemitic comments towards colleagues

2022-11-10T14:16:00-05:00

The UK’s Architects Registration Board (ARB) has found a British architect guilty of unacceptable professional conduct after the architect made “a series of offensive and antisemitic comments and gestures.” The architect, Justin Rooney, was also found guilty of making “a series of inappropriate and offensive and antisemitic public posts on his Instagram profile.”

Rooney stood accused of the charges while employed at London-based GRID Architects in 2021, where he was recruited as a temporary architect through an agency. A complaint was submitted by GRID to ARB’s Professional Conduct Committee in December 2021 in relation to Rooney’s comments.

The committee accepted evidence from two witnesses who claimed Rooney said he had “joined a practice of f*cking Jews” and that he had been placed within the office “with f*cking Jewish freaks.” Colleagues also accused Rooney of telling on...

More accusations of bullying at The Bartlett plague UCL ahead of leadership transition

2022-08-09T13:37:00-04:00

Weeks before its next Director steps into office, another faculty at UCL’s Bartlett School of Architecture has fallen into scandal after The Guardian recently leaked new accusations of bullying and harassment from within the School of Sustainable Construction.

A group of nine school faculty members was reportedly the signatories of the damning letter, which includes accusations of nepotism in addition to further complaints about the same kinds of harassment, age-based discrimination, racism, bullying of older staffers, and other tactics that have embroiled The Bartlett since last summer.

“We have seen our own academic careers and lives and those of our colleagues destroyed through bullying, harassment and other predatory practices and know that any effort to raise the issues of misconduct or fraudulent behaviour would lead to retaliation endangering our own careers and lives,” a portion of their statement reads.

Earlier on Archinect: UCL issues an apology and published report on the...

Migrant laborers file lawsuit against casino developer in U.S. territory, claiming forced labor

2019-06-26T14:43:00-04:00

Seven Chinese labourers who worked on the construction of a casino and resort in the US Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) are suing the owner of the project and two of its contractors, alleging they were victims of a forced labour scheme and had suffered injuries on site. The labourers were working on the Imperial Pacific casino and resort in Saipan, the largest island in the South Pacific commonwealth.

GCR covers the lawsuit seven laborers from China have brought forward against the casino's developer Imperial Pacific International, contractor MCC International Saipan Ltd Co, and contractor Gold Mantis Construction Decoration in Saipan, a U.S. commonwealth island just 120 miles north of Guam.

Among a long list of labor rights issues, human rights abuses, misleading work authorization promises, and safety violations, the plaintiffs claim that "despite receiving injuries, those in charge did not take employees to hospital and banned them from seeking medical assistance, threatening deportation," on top of allegedly being denied injury compensation.

The Architecture Lobby's statement on #metoo in architecture

2018-03-26T18:28:00-04:00

The Architecture Lobby released the following statement with regards to the #metoo movement in architecture. The organization invites firms to join their Solidarity Network in support of those who speak up against sexual harassment or abuse.

"We, The Architecture Lobby, stand with victims of sexual harassment and assault in school and in the workplace. We decry in no uncertain terms the use of positions of power to perpetuate abominable conduct. We ask all members of the architectural community to join us, and the many victims of harassment, in calling for fundamental change of our culture.

The issue of harassment in the workplace is not limited to any gender, employment status, or age. It has its roots in the relationship between workers and their bosses, as well as teachers and their students, in the power differential created by that relationship that allows harassment and abuse to go unchecked. For too long we have allowed the architecture profession to structurally elevate me...

Daniela Soleri accuses father, Paolo Soleri, of sexual abuse

2017-12-20T14:17:00-05:00

But speaking out is just a beginning. Others undergoing experiences similar to mine need assurance that protecting themselves and demanding fairness will be supported, regardless of who the perpetrator is, or how his work is perceived. They need to know that strengthening society’s capacity for fair, thoughtful treatment of everyone is also a valuable contribution, and not a threat.

Danila Soleri, in a poignant and exposing open letter published on Medium, titled "Sexual abuse: it's you, him, and his work" has accused her father, Paolo Soleri, of sexual abuse.

The open letter walks us through the psychological, emotional and tangent emotions and repercussions of such an experience while detailing the inner and outward struggle of living with a father who on the one hand had become notorious for his architectural marvels but who on the other hand had forgone human values in the search of creative greatness.