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Shanghai’s PSA plays host to ‘I.M. Pei: Life Is Architecture’
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THIS exhibition marks the first comprehensive retrospective on the Chinese mainland that dedicated to the life and work of Chinese American architect Ieoh Ming Pei (1917-2019). Originally organized by M+, the showcase premiered in Hong Kong from June 2024 to January 2025.
Widely regarded as the most internationally influential Chinese American architect of the 20th century, Pei was awarded the Pritzker Prize in 1983. Over his seven-decade career, he designed iconic structures, including the National Gallery of Art East Building (Washington, DC), the Grand Louvre modernization (Paris), the Fragrant Hill Hotel (Beijing), the Bank of China Tower (Hong Kong) and the Museum of Islamic Art (Doha, Qatar).
The Shanghai exhibition presents over 400 artifacts, including original sketches, architectural models, photographs, films, and archival materials, many of which have never been exhibited before.
Curated by architect James Wei Ke, the exhibition explores Pei’s legacy through six thematic sections, tracing his architectural philosophy alongside the social, cultural, and personal influences that shaped his vision.
Born in Guangzhou and raised in Hong Kong, Pei moved to Shanghai in 1927 at age 10, where he attended St. John’s Middle School and the YMCA Shanghai Middle School. The city’s rapid modernization in the 1930s exposed him to groundbreaking architecture — most notably the Park Hotel (1934), then the tallest building in Asia. Pei once recalled: “I was fascinated by the height of the Park Hotel, and from that moment on, I aspired to be an architect.”
Frequently traveling between Suzhou and Shanghai, Pei absorbed the contrast between classical Jiangnan (regions to the south of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River) gardens and the modern urban skyline.
These early experiences fueled his lifelong exploration of cultural identity, historical reinterpretation and transcultural design.
Visitors will journey through Pei’s career via six key themes: “Pei’s Cross-Cultural Foundations,” “Real Estate and Urban Redevelopment,” “Art and Civic Form,” “Power, Politics, and Patronage,” “Material and Structural Innovation” and “Reinterpreting History through Design.”
For example, “Art and Civic Forum” introduces Pei’s museum designs and his frequent collaborations with artists from Henry Moore to Zao Wou-Ki. The section demonstrates his belief in museums as civic spaces and the importance of dialogue between art and architecture.
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