A Ghanaian-British architect, David Adjaye, has been knighted in London. The investiture ceremony was performed by the Duke of Cambridge, Prince William, at Buckingham palace in London.
David Adjaye, graduated from the Royal College of Art and has notable works including the Smithsonian national museum of African American history and culture.
He is one of the leading architects of his generation and a global cultural ambassador for the UK.
In a statement, the Central Chancery of the Orders of Knighthood at St. James’s Palace said, David Adjaye, is recognized for his contribution to architecture and design.
David Frank Adjaye was born in Tanzania to Ghanaian parents and his influences range from contemporary art, music and science to African art forms and the civic life of cities. In 1994 he set up his first office, where his ingenious use of materials and his sculptural ability established him as an architect with an artist’s sensibility and vision.
He reformed his studio as Adjaye Associates in 2000 and immediately won several prestigious commissions.
In Oslo he designed the Nobel Peace Centre in the shell of a disused railway station (completed in 2005).
In London his design for the Whitechapel Idea Store pioneered a new approach to the provision of information services (2005).
Later projects in London included the Stephen Lawrence Centre, with teaching and community spaces (2007), Rivington Place, an exhibition venue and resource centre (2007), and the Bernie Grant Centre for the performing arts (2007).
He is currently working on a pair of major redevelopment projects in the city – 70-73 Piccadilly (ongoing), a £600 million scheme in the prestigious Piccadilly area; and the Hackney Fashion Hub (ongoing), a master plan to renew a substantial portion of the Hackney borough.
Adjaye Associates’ largest completed project to date is the £160 million Moscow School of Management Skolkovo (2010).
In the United States, Adjaye was the designer of a new home for the Museum of Contemporary Art in Denver (2007), two public libraries in Washington DC (2012), as well as of several innovative residential projects.
In 2009 a team led by Adjaye was selected to design the new $360 million Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture on the National Mall in Washington DC.
The practice has also completed a social housing scheme in New York’s Sugar Hill (2014) and The Ethelbert Cooper Gallery of African & African American Art at Harvard’s Hutchins Center (2014), and is currently working on the new home for The Studio Museum in Harlem (ongoing), the Ruby City building for the Linda Pace Foundation, and a condominium development for Four Seasons in Washington DC (ongoing).
Adjaye said he was humbled and honoured to receive the award and a knighthood by her majesty the queen for his contribution to architecture.
The knighthood follows two previous royal awards received by David Adjaye, the queen’s birthday honours in October 2016 and an order of the British Empire in 2007.
David who was born in Tanzania to a Ghanaian diplomat father was recently named among the 100 most influential personalities in the world by the time magazine.
