The Princeton University Art Museum has officially opened in New Jersey, marking the first major project designed by British-Ghanaian architect David Adjaye and his firm Adjaye Associates to be completed since multiple women accused him of sexual misconduct in 2023. The concrete-clad museum represents a significant expansion of the art museum on the Princeton University campus.

The 146,000-square-foot facility features nine bunker-like pavilions with deep cantilevers and corners that have been shaved off to reveal the aggregate of the concrete. The building showcases a facade of serrated precast concrete, with anodized aluminum paneling marking window-boxes throughout the exterior. The expansion also includes the re-cladding of the existing building to match the new structure's distinctive concrete exteriors.

Ron McCoy, the university architect at Princeton, explained that elements of classic brutalism are evident in the project. "Because of the mass, people are going to see traditional brutalism in the building and Kahn," he told Dezeen. "I think there's a kind of timeliness to that architecture that the building captures." The design draws inspiration from the monumental architectural tradition while incorporating contemporary elements.

The museum is organized around two main levels, with most of the collections occupying the second level. Multiple entrances provide access to the building, with the primary entrance tucked down a slope and through an outdoor atrium space that features a large-scale installation by artist Nick Cave. The aluminum window boxes face inwards in this area, allowing views from the galleries out into the exterior atrium.

The exterior atrium space is echoed in the monumental Grand Hall, which serves as both a social and performance space. This impressive area features massive cantilevered supports made with dark concrete aggregate and a quadrant skylight with wood mullions. A contrast between stone and wood carries throughout the building's design, with glued-laminated (glulam) beams supporting the ceiling, most notably visible in the grand staircase and mezzanine that provides entry from the ground floor into the collections.

Each gallery is fronted by a smooth granite entry portal, and the museum's flow was designed so that galleries run into one another, allowing for multiple and seamless transitions. Mass timber beams line the ceilings over the primary staircase leading up to the gallery level and continue in some of the gallery spaces. Throughout the galleries, smaller, wood-clad sitting rooms, some featuring ceiling murals, provide moments of respite for visitors.

The museum's organizational structure was specifically chosen to "break down hierarchies" within the collections. According to Princeton University, "The design of the new building allows the museum's globe-spanning collections to be exhibited substantially on a single level, shaping new ways of encountering the collections, privileging ideas of cultural contact and exchange, and fostering new modes of storytelling." The university added that "by challenging the traditional hierarchies inherent in multilevel gallery display, the museum will foster moments of discovery and surprise as visitors encounter ideas and objects in narratives that move beyond the boundaries of geography and chronology."

A restaurant with an expansive terrace sits at the top of the building, while many gallery spaces feature recessed skylights with heavy tint that allow subtle natural light to filter into the interior spaces. These skylights provide controlled illumination that protects the artwork while maintaining a connection to the outside environment.

The project's completion comes amid significant controversy surrounding Adjaye. Representatives from Princeton highlighted that at the time the sexual misconduct allegations emerged, most of the design work and at least 50 percent of the construction had already been completed. "David stepped back from day-to-day involvement in the project, leaving it in the hands of executive architects Cooper Robertson, who participated in site visits all the way through to project completion in fall 2024," said a Princeton representative, who also noted that Adjaye was not invited to the opening celebrations in October.

Since the accusations were detailed in an extensive Financial Times report, Adjaye has stepped back from operations and given over aspects of leadership to CEOs in his New York and London offices. Adjaye has denied the allegations, stating they are "untrue." The controversy has caused many clients to distance themselves from the studio, with Ghana's government considering a "complete halt" of Adjaye's national cathedral project.

The Princeton University Art Museum represents the first of several buildings by Adjaye scheduled to open in the United States this year, including the Studio Museum in Harlem. The project involved numerous collaborators, with Adjaye Associates serving as design architect and Cooper Robertson as executive architect. Other key contributors included Field Operations as landscape architect, Silman for structural engineering, and Tillotson Design Associates for lighting design. The photography documenting the completed museum was captured by Richard Barnes.