I.M. Pei was a renowned Chinese-American architect born in 1917 in China. He received degrees from MIT and Harvard and had a prolific career designing many iconic buildings around the world. Some of his most famous works include the glass pyramid entrance to the Louvre museum in Paris, the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library in Boston, and the Bank of China Tower in Hong Kong. Pei was known for his modernist geometric designs and innovative use of materials like glass and stone. He received many honors over his career including the Pritzker Architecture Prize and Presidential Medals of Freedom and Liberty. Pei continued designing well into his later years, passing away in 2019 at the age of 102, leaving a lasting legacy as

1. I.M.PEI

2. Quick FACTS
Birth date:- 26TH APRIL 1914
Education :- Massachusetts institute Of Technology, Harvard University
Place of birth:- canton, GUANGZHOU, CHINA
Full name:- Ieoh Ming Pei

3. Childhood & Early Life
 I. M. Pei was born on April 26, 1917 in Suzhou, China,
to Tsuyee Pei and Lien Kwun. His father was a
prmonent banker. Pei lost his mother to cancer, when
he was thirteen.
 He came to the United States at the young age of 17.
His reason for immigrating was to receive an American
education focusing on Architecture.
 He received his Bachelor of Architecture degree from
MIT in 1940. Originally, he began his studies at the
University of Pennsylvania, but he believed their
curriculum was lacking in his area of interest, structural
engineering.
 In 1946, he was awarded his Masters in Architecture
from the Harvard Graduate School of Design. Once he
got his degree, he was appointed assistant professor.

4. Personal Life & Legacy
 In 1942, I.M. Pei married fellow architect Eileen Loo
and together they went on to have children Chien
Chung Pei, Li Chung Pei, T’ing Chung, and Liane Pei.
His wife died in June 2014.
 During the mid 1970s, plates of glass fell out of his
John Hancock Tower in Boston, and his reputation was
questioned. He took the criticism in stride and went on
to develop even more extensive glass buildings such
as his Allied Bank Tower in Dallas, the Louvre Museum,
and the famous Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Museum in
Ohio.
 According to the Pritzker Architecture committee, his
strengths lie in his ability to “draw together disparate
people and disciplines to create a harmonious
environment.”
 I.M. Pei died on 16 May 2019, at Manhattan, New York
City, at the age of 102.

5. Career
 While still enrolled in Harvard, his education was interrupted in
1943 when he served on the National Defense Research
Committee. During WWII, this committee was set to conduct
research on the devices of warfare.
 From 1945 to 1948, he started his architectural career by teaching
as an assistant professor at Harvard. Here, he befriended two
students with whom he was able to design several low-cost
houses, winning recognition in the Arts and Architecture magazine.
 In 1948, he accepted the prestigious position of Director of
Architecture at Webb & Knapp, a real estate company. While with
the company, he was able to produce his first successful project,
when he designed a two-story corporate building for Gulf Oil in
Atlanta, Georgia, in 1949.
 During his stint with Webb & Knapp, he designed Mile High Center
in Colorado and a united urban area for Washington, D.C.,
L'Enfant Plaza.
 In 1955, he decided to break free and established his own
architectural firm called I.M. Pei & Associates.
 His own firm designed some prominent buildings across the globe
from Taiwan to Colorado. These include the John Fitzgerald
Kennedy Library in Boston, the Grand Louvre pyramid in Paris,
and the Bank of China Tower in Hong Kong which stands over 72
stories high.
 He retired from his firm in 1990 but continued to design buildings
till his last days.

6. Awards & Achievements
 In 1979, he was awarded the Gold
Medal for Architecture of the
American Academy of Arts and
Letters. The same year he won
the Gold Medal of the American
Institute of Architects
 In 1983, he was awarded the
prestigious 'Pritzker Prize',
considered as Nobel Prize of
architecture.
 On July 4, 1986, President Ronald
Reagan bestowed the Medal of
Liberty upon Pei.
 In 1993, President George H.W.
Bush awarded him with the Medal
Freedom.
 In 2003, he was given the Lifetime
Achievement Award from the
Smithsonian Institution’s Cooper-
Hewitt National Design Museum

7. Museum of Islamic Art, Doha, Qatar, 2008
The Museum of Islamic Art is one of Pei's
latest projects built in Doga. Built in 2008,
the museum building has rapidly become an
iconic feature of the Doha landscape.
Standing alone on reclaimed land, the
building draws much influence from ancient
Islamic architecture, notably the Ibn Tulun
Mosque in Cairo.
The Museum is comprised of a main
building with an adjacent education wing
connected by a large central courtyard. The
main building rises five-storeys, topped by a
high domed atrium within a central
tower. The cream-coloured limestone
captures the changes in light and shade
during the day. The centrepiece of the
atrium is a curved double staircase leading
up to the first floor. Above it floats an ornate
circular metal chandelier echoing the curve
of the staircase.

8. Suzhou Museum, Suzhou, China, 2006
Founded in 1960 and originally located in the national historic landmark,
Zhong Wang Fu palace complex, Suzhou Museum has been a highly-
regarded regional museum with a number of significant Chinese cultural
relics.
A new museum designed by world famous architect I.M.Pei was
completed in October 2006, covering over 10,700 square meter and
located at the cross of Dongbei Street and Qimen Road. The design of
this new museum visually complements the traditional architecture of
Zhong Wang Fu.

9. Miho Museum, Kyoto, Japan, 1997
The Miho Museum is situated in the natural rich mountains
of Shigaraki, Japan. Pei's concept is based on the
Taoyuan Township, which is a destination town drawn by
the Chinese poet 'Peach Flower Geno', is guided by the
tree-lined path of the weeping cherry blossoms, beyond
the tunnel and the suspension bridge to the art museum.
As visitors travel through the beautiful arcing tunnel, they
see an entrance with a grommet-shaped roof on the other
side of the bridge over the valley. When visitors step into
the calm entrance, they are surrounded by the light that is
falling from the glass roof and the gentle beige limestone
wall, and a large space with a row of gentle mountains will
extend to the far side.

10. Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Cleveland, USA, 1995
Located in Cleveland, Ohio, Pei's designe embodies the music celebrated within, the building is an icon of
the city that coined the term "rock and roll". The architect juxtaposed simple geometric forms to combine
diverse functions within a unified whole: a theater cantilevered over Lake Erie one one side balances a
circular performance drum on the other, while a 165-foot-high orthogonal tower rises from the water to
engage a tetrahedral tower tent.
Pei's building acts like an explosive musical chord, the sculptural components reverberate out from the
center. Set back in 1.2-acre performance plaza on the roof of the main exhibition space, the building rises
with eight unique floor plates of decreasing size, culminating in the Hall of Fame, contemplative fiber
optics chamber.

11. Bank of China Tower, Hong Kong, China,
1990
Completed in 1990, Pei's tower represents the
successful integration of structure and form to
meet the needs of both client and city. With a
limited budget and a difficult inland site, the
owner requested a distinctive regional
headquarters with an imposing banking hall and
130,000-square-metre of office space.
Pei designed a tall and dynamic structure that
responds to that criteria. The tower would take
advantage of the surrounding views while being
robust enough to withstand a typhoon.

12. Le Grand Louvre, Paris, France, 1989
The expansion and modernization of the historic Louvre was probably one of the most
iconic buildings of I.M. Pei. The challenge was to modernize and expand the building
and better integrate it with the city, all without compromising the integrity of the historic
structure.
A centrally located glass pyramid forms the main entrance and provides direct access
to galleries in each of the museum's three wings. The pyramid's distinctly modern
articulation complements the historic Louvre in a dialogue of harmonious contrast.

13. John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, Boston, USA, 1979
Pei was commissioned to design the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and
Museum to the memory of the United States' 35th president. Located on a 10-
acre park, overlooking the sea that he loved and the city that launched him to
greatness, the Library stands as a vibrant tribute to the life and times of John F.
Kennedy.
Designed as a timeless piece, the building is overlooking Boston, and the ocean
and beyond, the former landfill site was planted with beach grass to recall
Kennedy's love of the sea. A split-level design organizes museum spaces in a
layer below ground, with key emotive elements dramatically isolated above.

14. Design and philosophy
Due to his reliance on abstract form and materials such as stone, concrete ,
glass, and steel, Pei has been considered a disciple of Walter Gropius
However, pei shows little concern with the theory he does not believe that
architecture must find forms to express the times or that it should remain
isolated from commercial forces
Pei generally, DESIGNS SOPHISTICATED GLASS CLAD BUILDINGS
LOSELY REALETD YO HIDGH TECH MOVEMENT
However many of his designs result from original design concept
He frequently works on a large scale and is renowned for his sharp,
geometric designs
I.M Pei will likely be remembered as a bastion of modernism whose
appreciation for the urbane in art, planning, and architecture led him to the
design of Many of the world’s most thoughtful projects.

15. Develop a signature style
According to ArchDaily, as a student of Le Corbusier, Pei
embodied the core belief of modernism that form follows
function, and added his own interpretation. Pei believed
that form follows intention (which incorporates function).
His work reflects this philosophy by his incorporation of
functional symbols into all his works. His signature style
was geometric patterns and it's what makes his buildings
instantly recognizable. He considered the role of geometry
in planning and designing buildings by using a variety of
lines and polygons. Pei's signature pyramids can be
enjoyed at the National Gallery of Art East Building in
Washington, DC. and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in
Cleveland, Ohio. When you see his pyramid at the Louvre
you know that is Pei.

16. Build resilience
Designers all know that the pain-staking detail of the
process can be unforgiving and thankless. Being resilient
in the face of adversity is a skill every successful designer
must master. Pei struggled in the early years of his own
career to fix the John Hancock Tower in Boston, after the
glass facade of the 60-story block had design issues that
led to delays and cost overruns. He later faced criticism
over the glass pyramid in the courtyard of the
Louvre. During a NPR interview Pei said, "I couldn't walk
the streets of Paris without people looking at me and
saying, 'There you go again. What are you doing here?
What are you doing to us? What are you doing to our
great Louvre?" According to Pei "Success is a collection
of problems solved;" some thick skin.

17. Eliminate the inessential
This expressed goal of Pei should be the mantra of every
designer or design studio. Draw it on your white board or
hang it on your wall. Pei's simplicity and use of negative
space are hallmarks that draw you into his structures.
"You cannot defend your design without knowing what
you're designing for," said Pei. This devotion to craft and
selling a vision make this design legend someone the
world will sorely miss.