LEARN FROM THE BEST

Even someone as established as Adjaye, whose works include the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, US, and the Idea Store, a chain of educational community centres in London, took part in mentorship programmes in the early days of his career.

He admits, “Working for [British architect] David Chipperfield was such a memorable moment. It was amazing to be able to rummage through his library, which is, kind of, one of the most extraordinary libraries in the world on architecture.” Having Portuguese architecture great Eduardo Souto de Moura mentor him in the early 1990s was also a highlight for Adjaye as he reminisced about “the kind of incredible conversations we had on how one makes architecture profound”.

Canadian dance choreographer Crystal Pite, who mentored Senegalese hip-hop dancer Khoudia Touré under the Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative, concurred. “Dancers particularly benefit from such a mentorship programme,” she said, admitting that she had picked up a lot of pointers through a series of apprenticeships as a young dancer, and when she was starting out as a choreographer.

“It was really through doing and watching people ‘ahead’ of me creating things that I really learned how to [do it myself], and then a lot of the rest is through trial and error,” said Pite, who has snagged various awards, including the prestigious 2018 Olivier Award for Best New Dance Production for Flight Pattern. “We work in this strange, wordless form. It’s all unspoken, and so much of what we do happens in the present moment with each other in the studio.”