Ieoh Ming Pei

The contemporary
great architect

Early life and education

Chinese name:
born in Guangzhou,
Guangdong Province,
China
April 26, 1917
At 17, went to the US to
study architecture
received a Bachelor of
Architecture degree
from MIT in 1940
I. M. Pei became a
naturalized citizen of the
United States in 1954

In 1955 he formed the

partnership of I. M. Pei &
Associates, which became
I. M. Pei & Partners in 1966
and Pei Cobb Freed &
Partners in 1989
received the 1968
Architectural Firm Award of
the American Institute of
Architects, the highest honor
bestowed on an architectural
practice by the Institute
In late 1990, after more than
four decades of practice, Mr.
Pei retired from the firm in
order to pursue smaller
projects of personal interest

Accomplishments

the Gold Medal for Architecture from the

American Academy of Arts and Letters and
the Gold Medal of the American Institute of
Architects
the Gold Medal from Alpha Rho Chi (the
national professional fraternity of architects)
the Grande Mdaille d'Or from the French
Acadmie d'Architecture
the Pritzker Architecture Prize

His projects

Luce Memorial Chapel (1963)

Dallas, Texas City Hall (1972)
John Hancock Tower, in Boston (1976)
East Building, National Gallery of Art (1979)
Bank of China Tower (1982-1990)
Pyramids of the Louvre (1989)

Hancock Tower

Basic information

Located in Boston
John Hancock Tower /"New" Hancock
Tower /officially named Hancock Place
designed by I.M. Pei and Henry N. Cobb
790 feet
sixty floors
10,344 panes of glass
4' x 11', 500 lb (1.2x3.4 m, 227 kg)
windowpanes
completed in 1976

introduction

In 1977 the AIA presented Cobb

with a National Honor Award for
the John Hancock Tower
As of 2005, it is the tallest building
in New England, the 43rd tallest
building in the United States, and
the 112th tallest building in the
world
achievement in minimalist,
modernist skyscraper design
no spandrels between the floors
and the mullions are minimal
glass is tinted blue -transplanted
sky in day time

Falling glass panes

The building's most

dangerous flaw
Police close off surrounding
streets whenever winds
reached 45 mph (72 km/h)
Glass crashes to the sidewalk
hundreds of feet below
combination of the doublepaned glass
pressure differentials
between the inside and
outside air
installing a network of
10,000 sensors

Pyramide du Louvre

Architect:
I.M.Pei

Location: Paris
France

Date :1989

Building Type:
art museum
entrance

Construction
System: glass
and steel rods
and cable

Style :modern

The Louvre is the most famous of the Grands Projets.It is not

so much the pyramid, but the entrance space that it covers
that is the most important part of the project. The brilliance of
making an entrance to the worlds largest art museum by
hollowing-out its plaza and constructing underground
connections to its various wings could easily be lost amidst
the unmistakable iconography of the pyramid.
The entrance has
rationalized and
opened-up the
collections of the
Louvre to the
throngs of
museum-goers
who visit its
collections.

Bank of China Tower-a Star Among Stars

One of the
most
recognized
skyscrapers in
Hong Kong.
Symbol of the
strength ,
vitality and
growth.

The tallest building in Hong

Kong and Asia from 1989 to
1992
located near Central MTR
station
A small observation deck on
the 43rd floor of the building is
open to the public.

Inspiration

Bamboo---symbol of revitalization and hope.

X-shape ---bad luck in Chinese culture

Sharp edge like a cleaver---criticism of Feng
Shui
Chinese element--statue of lion
in front of
the gate

Bank of China Tower