A row is developing in Russia after renowned designer Hani Rashid was rather abrasively let go from a contemporary expansion of the State Hermitage Museum in Moscow. 

The Art Newspaper is reporting that the 63-year-old architect was “unceremoniously” dropped from the museum’s satellite project after not hearing from the city or developers LSR Group in over a year. 

“We received all of the necessary approvals for this project, but we stopped hearing news from Moscow about a year ago, just when we were ready to pour the concrete,” Rashid told TAN’s Sophia Kishkovsky.

This marks the second time in four years that the architect has been removed from a cultural project in the Russian Federation. Rashid was previously involved in a Putin-backed scheme for a cultural center in Vladivostok that ultimately led to his resignation owing to an issue surrounding the financial house that was backing the development, which the U.S. government had sanctioned. 

The Asymptote co-founder says he was taken off rather briskly, without even a warning or any other form of communication from his development partners; instead, having to find out via Instagram that his team had been replaced by a local firm named SPEECH.  

For its part, LSR cited flaws it saw in Rashid’s design as the reasoning behind the removal. 

“The percentage of exhibition space was too small in relation to the total volume of the building,” an LSR press statement read. “The project turned out to be very energy-consuming, which is an important factor in the modern world.” 

Asymptote was tapped in 2015 to lead the project, which is part of a larger redevelopment of a former car factory managed by LSR. Rashid himself was contacted directly by the Hermitage’s leader Mikhail Piotrovsky, who appears to be siding with the firm in the dispute. 

“All contracts for the construction of the Hermitage in Moscow have now expired. New negotiations are expected. As I understand it, the investor cannot execute Hani Rashid’s project. It is too expensive for him and too difficult to execute,” he told TAN. “Changing investors, contractors, architects is a common thing. In the case of Moscow, the Hermitage is neither the customer nor the builder.”

The developers have said Asymptote will be fully compensated for their efforts. The new design has already been approved and is expected to see completion in 2024.