SHANGHAI, 24 April (BelTA - China Daily) - This spring, Shanghai
welcomes I. M. Pei: Life Is Architecture, the first major retrospective
of the Chinese American architect in the mainland.
Organized by the Power Station of Art (PSA) and M+, the exhibition will open on Saturday, following its acclaimed Hong Kong debut.
I. M. Pei (1917-2019), a Pritzker Prize laureate, left a global legacy of architecture over the course of seven decades. His iconic buildings — like the Louvre Pyramid in Paris, the Bank of China Tower in Hong Kong, and the Suzhou Museum — helped redefine modern architecture while honoring history and place.
Born in Guangzhou and raised in Shanghai and Suzhou, Pei's early exposure to Jiangnan gardens and urban landscapes shaped his cross-cultural design sensibilities. This Shanghai exhibition marks a homecoming, with more than 400 drawings, models, photographs, and films — many never before seen on the mainland.
The show explores six themes, from Pei's multicultural upbringing to his innovations in material and structure, his civic-minded museum designs, and his ability to blend modernism with historical tradition. The exhibition design by architect James Wei Ke echoes the layered spatial qualities of Chinese gardens, creating a multisensory journey through Pei's architectural vision.
Lectures and discussions will accompany the exhibition, including a roundtable on the architect's influence in China.
Pei's life, shaped by movement between cultures, is reflected in his work — timeless spaces that bridge tradition and modernity. In the city where his journey began, Life Is Architecture invites visitors to rediscover the man whose designs helped shape the world.
Organized by the Power Station of Art (PSA) and M+, the exhibition will open on Saturday, following its acclaimed Hong Kong debut.
I. M. Pei (1917-2019), a Pritzker Prize laureate, left a global legacy of architecture over the course of seven decades. His iconic buildings — like the Louvre Pyramid in Paris, the Bank of China Tower in Hong Kong, and the Suzhou Museum — helped redefine modern architecture while honoring history and place.
Born in Guangzhou and raised in Shanghai and Suzhou, Pei's early exposure to Jiangnan gardens and urban landscapes shaped his cross-cultural design sensibilities. This Shanghai exhibition marks a homecoming, with more than 400 drawings, models, photographs, and films — many never before seen on the mainland.
The show explores six themes, from Pei's multicultural upbringing to his innovations in material and structure, his civic-minded museum designs, and his ability to blend modernism with historical tradition. The exhibition design by architect James Wei Ke echoes the layered spatial qualities of Chinese gardens, creating a multisensory journey through Pei's architectural vision.
Lectures and discussions will accompany the exhibition, including a roundtable on the architect's influence in China.
Pei's life, shaped by movement between cultures, is reflected in his work — timeless spaces that bridge tradition and modernity. In the city where his journey began, Life Is Architecture invites visitors to rediscover the man whose designs helped shape the world.
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