Since graduating what kinds
of projects have you done? What
were the most tasking or endearing
projects?
I have been in practice for ten years
which is still quite short, in Europe I
would be regarded as a young architect
because over there a young architect is
someone who is beginning to form their
own creative identity. You’re an architect
once you have crossed over and started
to have finished buildings and people are
beginning to see a style of architecture
related or unique to you.
I have worked on a lot of projects from
various offices. Before I left London, I
worked with Skidmore, Owings & Merrill
LLP SOM an American practice on a
project in Qatar. When I left London, I
worked in the Office for Metropolitan
Architecture Rotterdam and the one that
stands out the most was the proposal for
the fourth mainland bridge, which will
be between Ajah and Ikorodu road. We
did a concept for a double decker bridge
with a pedestrian section on the lower
deck and vehicles on top. I was part of
the bridge design team of six people for
two and half months. The process was
very intense, very creative and forward
thinking.
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I spoke with someone yesterday who
works in Lagos State Government and
he said when the bridge was presented
in 2009 they thought it was crazy and
wondered why anyone would think of
such, but it eventually grew on them. It’s
funny because while we were over in
Rotterdam we thought it was so amazing
africandesignmagazine.com
and the reaction in Nigeria was the
complete opposite.
When I got back to Nigeria I worked with
James Cubitt Architects for four years.
One particular project, which stands
out, was the Nigeria Liquefied Natural
Gas project in Port Harcourt. The most
important thing I learnt from that project
is the involvement of stakeholders and
how you have to carry everyone along
during the planning process. It would
be nice to see the building when the
project is finished; how the multi layered
decision making process has been
translated into reality and how people
use the space.
Those are large projects, how
about now, what are you working on?
We currently have under construction
a shopping mall and on the scale of
shopping malls it is quite small. The
Maryland Mall is replacing the old
Maryland shopping complex. It’s a
five storey building with a basement
for parking, a Shoprite, four Genesis
cinema screens. We are proud as it’s an
indigenous shopping mall. For me, what
has been a frustration or challenge since
coming back to Nigeria is the reliance on
foreign architect and how people say we
need the South Africans or the British to
design for us.
The thing is, I am part of the ongoing
generation sent away for school and
then you come back home and still hear
the same things being said before you
left. That was the reason our parents
paid huge fees for us to study abroad.