ARCHITECT‘s Katharine Keane reports that AIA New York (AIANY) has opted to rescind its 2018 Design Awards from Richard Meier, FAIA, and Peter Marino, FAIA following misconduct allegations made public in The New York Times last week.
Meier was going to be recognized with an Architecture Merit Award for his firm’s work on the Leblon Offices in Rio de Janeiro and Marino was slated to be awarded an Interior Merit prize for his eponymous firm’s work on the Lobster Club in New York City.
In a statement released yesterday, the organization’s executive director Benjamin Prosky, Assoc. AIA, explained that though the “decision does not speak to the design quality of the projects or the contributions from the respective firms’ design teams … we cannot in good conscience confer these awards under these circumstances,” referring to accusations of sexual harassment by Meier and multiple pending and settled lawsuits that cite sexual harassment and racist behavior by Marino.
