I. M. Pei, a pillar of modern architecture, dies at 102 in US

May 18, 2019

Ieoh Ming Pei, the globe-trotting, versatile, preeminent Chinese-US architect who created a distinct brand of modern building design with his sharp lines and exquisite structures, has died at age of 102 years.

Background

I.M. Pei was born on 26 April 1917, in Canton, China and in 1935 he came to United States with plans to study architecture. He studied architecture at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Harvard University and had plans to practice in China. But World War II and revolution in China prevented him from going back

Renowned Works of I.M. Pei

In 1948 in US he started his early work of designing low-income housing, office buildings, and later shifted to designing mixed-used complexes to a worldwide collection of municipal buildings, hotels and museums. Some of them are Society Hill apartment complex in Philadelphia, Mile High Center office building in Denver, and Kips Bay Plaza Apartments in Manhattan.

His other renowned works includes:

The trapezoidal addition to National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.,
The chiseled towers of National Center of Atmospheric Research that blend in with reddish mountains in Boulder, Colorado.
The multi-shaped Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, that is on shore of Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland, Ohio. Shows he captured the spirit of rebellion.
He revived The Louvre with a Giant Glass (about 22-metre) pyramid in Paris
Bank of China tower in Hong Kong,
He even designed the Museum of Islamic Art in Doha, Qatar, which opened in 2008 to fanfare.

Awards Conferred to I.M. Pei

National Medal of Arts in 1988 by President Reagan.
Pritzker Architecture Prize in 1983.
In 1979 he was awarded American Institute of Architects Gold Medal.
Presidential Medal of Freedom (one of highest civilian awards of the United States) in 1992 by President George H.W. Bush.

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