Over the years, high-rise buildings have mushroomed in China, and people began to talk about the "taste", "style" and "soul" of architecture, as well as I.M. Pei, the "first architect in China" and his representative works: the glass pyramid of the Louvre in France, the Bank of China Building in Hong Kong, the Meixiu Museum in Japan, the East Hall of the National Art Museum in Washington, USA, and the German History Museum. However, I can only be fascinated by the world inside I.M. Pei: "The universe and I.M. Pei have one thing in common: we know very little about both." I.M. Pei has always wanted the world to know him through his architecture, and I.M. Pei on the I.M. Pei is a window. For the first time, he described in detail his works, life, his influence, the proverbs he learned in life and his unremitting pursuit of perfection.
I.M. Pei talked about I.M. Pei, analyzed architectural masterpieces, and did not forget to talk about music and artistic accomplishment, gardens and China feelings. More importantly, the ever-present humanistic concern: "The purpose of architecture is to improve life, not just the objects in the space for appreciation. Simplifying the architecture to this extent is superficial. Architecture must be integrated into human activities and improve the quality of such activities. This is my view on architecture. I hope people can understand my work from this perspective. "
Everyone's childhood influence often affects his life. I.M. Pei was born in Beilin, a lion in Suzhou, China. Suzhou Garden is a good place to play as a child. The caves, stone bridges, ponds and waterfalls in the rockery will arouse his infinite fantasies. He recalled: "I later realized what I learned from the experience in Suzhou. Now that I think about it, I should say that those experiences have a considerable influence on my design. Let me realize that man and nature coexist, not just nature. Creativity is the common crystallization of human ingenuity and nature, which I learned from Suzhou gardens. "
"People-oriented" Architectural Thinking
I.M. Pei can show his architectural genius all over the world. In addition to the scenery, it is more of a hard and secular challenge. And his own most proud works are those that have been criticized by the world and proved to be masterpieces. This book is also devoted to chapters and memories. The first chapter is the glass pyramid of the Louvre. He advocated that the rich collection of the Louvre should be open to the public. In Marlowe's words, "Let the most outstanding works of mankind be appreciated by the most people." The arrogant French don't think so. He had to remind the critics again and again that the stone pyramid has nothing to do with the glass pyramid. The former is made for the dead and the latter for the living. "The design of the Louvre is a rare challenge in my life. From beginning to end, the design of the Louvre took 65,438+03 years. I don't want to design another Louvre. This design case was very bumpy from the beginning, and the attack never stopped ... Between 1984 and 1985 after we publicly displayed the pyramid design, the debate has reached a white-hot level, and I have also received a lot of attention on the streets of Paris. " Today, the Louvre Pyramid and the Eiffel Tower are considered as symbols and symbols of Paris.
The challenge he encountered in Hongkong was the "Feng Shui" with China characteristics. "The origin of Feng Shui is a belief in natural forces, but it later evolved into a superstition. It is difficult to avoid this problem in the architectural design of Hong Kong. Many geomancers are responsible for the site selection, orientation and modeling of buildings. Although I knew something about it, I didn't take it seriously. However, as soon as the design of the Bank of China Tower came out, it was attacked more violently than the Louvre. Of course, the reasons are different. They accuse the building of having too many sharp corners, and think that these sharp corners are like sharp knives, which will bring bad luck to the surrounding buildings, and there are many other objections. Fortunately, my customers are always on my side. " For the world, I.M. Pei is unique in his endless garden education in China; As far as China is concerned, I.M. Pei must use his own architecture to prove that only by putting the ancestors' things in the inferior position and retaining the superior ones can he stand tall in the world architecture. His attempt is beneficial.
I.M. Pei talks about architecture as well as cultural feelings: he likes music because music and architecture are interlinked; He also likes Han Yu's prose and poetry, and loves Tao Yuanming's articles even more. "Mr. Changli's Sacrifice to Twelve Lang makes people cry, and Tao Yuanming's Farewell to Hometown and Peach Blossom Garden are full of charm."
In the decades-long pursuit of architecture, I.M. Pei never leaves the word "people": "In my thinking," people-oriented "is probably the most obvious, which is also the difference between Chinese and Western cultures." "I think the proportion of people in architectural design is very important, and I have been trying to do this well in architectural design." He has reservations about the high-rise buildings in China, and he is very sad about the destruction of traditional buildings. Isn't his elegant words a wake-up call for the urban construction in China today: "I think a city is like a person's body, with a heart, lungs and stomach. New york's central park is like new york's lungs, and Suzhou gardens are Suzhou's lungs; The road is the large intestine of the city, and the alley is the small intestine of the city, large and small, which are indispensable. Urban design is related to the human body, but the scale is different. "
I.M. Pei, Chinese-American architect. 1917 was born in Guangdong, China on April 26th, and received secondary education in Shanghai. 1935, he went to America, 1940, and he got a bachelor's degree from MIT. 1946 obtained a master's degree from Harvard University and stayed on as a teacher. From 65438 to 0948, he served as the head of the construction department of W. Seckendorf's real estate company. From 65438 to 0955, he assembled a group of experts from overall planning to interior design to start a business in new york. He not only created many excellent single buildings from the perspective of urban planning, but also changed the face of neighboring areas and promoted the development of the city. He has contributed to the renovation of old districts and the development of new districts in Montreal, Denver, Philadelphia, Boston, new york, Dallas and Singapore. I.M. Pei's architectural style is generally considered to be influenced by Gropius W. Gropius mastered the skillful skills of using abstract geometric forms in architectural design and skillfully used building materials such as stone, concrete, steel and glass. As an architect in China, he advocates seeking suitable ways to express the essence of China's architectural tradition. I.M. Pei is a member of American Institute of Architects, royal institute of british architects, American Honorary Interior Design Association, American Institute of Design and National Arts Council. He has won many awards, including 1979 American Institute of Architects Gold Award and 1983 Pritzker Architectural Art Award. Representative works include Colorado Atmospheric Research Center, Luce Memorial Church of Donghai University in Taiwan Province Province, China, Social Ridge Residential Area in Philadelphia, Kennedy International Airport Terminal in new york, China Bank Office Building in Singapore, Dallas City Hall, East Hall of National Gallery of Washington, Kennedy Library in Boston, Xiangshan Hotel in Beijing, Napoleon Garden, etc.
Introduction to Yu Ming:
19 17 was born in Guangzhou. His ancestors were Suzhou aristocrats, and his father Bei Zuyi was the president of China Bank. On 19 19, he went to Hong Kong to establish the Bank of China Hong Kong Branch. 65438-0935, go to America to study architecture. Today, its architectural designs are all over the world, such as the East Pavilion of the National Art Museum in Washington, USA, and the German History Museum. Architecture is a science, why is it juxtaposed with art? I.M. Pei is not only an outstanding architect, but also built many magnificent palaces with pens and rulers. He is an extremely idealistic architectural artist who is good at combining ancient traditional architectural art with the latest modern technology, thus creating his own unique style. He is most praised for his concern for the interests of civilians in architectural design. He has designed many popular apartments in new york, Philadelphia, Cleveland and Chicago, which are both beautiful and economical. The three-story social apartment he designed in Philadelphia is very popular with the working class.
Many people know the glass pyramid in front of the Louvre in France. More and more people regard it as the symbol and symbol of Paris together with the Eiffel Tower. Little known, however, is that when it was first built, it was opposed by most people in Paris, and its designer I.M. Pei also met with a lot of eyes on the streets of Paris. Because the Louvre is a national landmark, people want it to remain the same. In the 12 century, the Louvre was once a castle, mainly for soldiers to guard the city and store food and ammunition. Later, the building continued to expand and once became a royal palace. Later, many kings showed their works of art here. Like the Forbidden City in Beijing, the Louvre is located in the center of Paris and is a symbol of royal majesty. 1983, the Louvre is still a barrier in Paris. How to transform this palace into a modern museum has become a difficult problem in this city. The glass pyramid successfully solved this problem. With the pyramids, the contrast between the old and the new makes the Louvre architecture clearer. The glass and metal structures used in the pyramids represent the characteristics of our time and are completely different from the past. It tells people that the Louvre today is not the palace of the king of France, but a public museum belonging to the "public". People need to adapt to architecture and need an acceptance process. Many people have already seen the design of the glass pyramid. The glass pyramid on the screen is very thin, and all you can see is some crossed steel columns, which makes it difficult for people to feel the feeling of "a shining diamond is shining". So it was questioned from the beginning. However, I.M. Pei put it well: "People usually understand architecture very quickly ... but it is obvious to all when it is finished. If you are lucky enough to use this building, people may say with emotion,' Oh, good, I see.' So it is not too difficult for people to accept the building after it is completed. The difficulty lies in building it. "
Kennedy Presidential Library, USA
I.M. Pei's name about I.M. Pei sounds strange at first glance, but in fact, the complete understanding should be that I.M. Pei is talking about his own experience and understanding of architecture, mainly the important buildings he designed. I.M. Pei is a famous architect in China. 19 17 was born in Suzhou, China, and the private gardens in Suzhou had a subtle influence on him. His architecture uniquely reflects the new aesthetic standards produced by the fusion of European and Asian traditions-eternal stone and glass. China's cultural background has a subtle influence on him, but he never deliberately highlights this point. "For me, the special functional requirements of the building and the local human history are the most important, far more important than my cultural background in China. When designing the Louvre in France, my first thought was not my China cultural background, but French history and culture. I think time, culture and place are the elements of architectural design. " I.M. Pei's architectural design in China also embodies this concept, such as Bank of China Tower, Bank of China Headquarters Building and Xiangshan Hotel. The Suzhou Museum being designed not only embodies modern characteristics, but also strives to coordinate with the white-gray tiles of the ancient city and strive to strike a balance between "Suzhou flavor" and innovation.
The glass pyramid of Louvre in France
The author of this book, Gero von boehm, is a close friend of I.M. Pei. Their conversation is more like casual chatting with old friends, expressing their professional knowledge in plain language. At the end of this book, an interview with the translator is attached, which shows us Mr. Bei's feelings for China. He is very concerned about the development of China, such as the relationship between the development of Beijing's new city and the transformation of the old city, and the regional functional planning of Shanghai Pudong. China's cities are developing at a high speed, and many places are building new urban areas. China has an ancient cultural tradition and a vast territory, and the situation in each place is very different. Therefore, every city should embody its own characteristics. We can all speak Mandarin, but we can't all live in the same city. The same building, the same street, this monotonous repetition is sad. We need more distinctive buildings and more architects like I.M. Pei.
Ieoh Ming Pei
I.M. Pei is an internationally renowned architect. More than 70 works in his life are intertwined with money, power and politics without exception. He applied the unique combination of diplomatic skills and design to the Bank of China Tower in Hong Kong, the National Art Museum in Washington and the Louvre in Paris, France.
Preservation of ancient buildings: I said that because the Forbidden City is a cultural relic, it is a national treasure. Now look around, the greening is good, the sky and trees are harmonious, and high-rise buildings will destroy the cultural relics of the Forbidden City.
Up to now, I.M. Pei still thinks that the prohibition of building tall buildings near the Forbidden City is his main contribution.
I.M. Pei: For me, that is the greatest achievement and the greatest satisfaction.
I used to know Liang Sicheng very well. He came to America, and I have seen him many times. It's a pity that the walls of Beijing have been torn down. I talked to Liang Sicheng, and it's a pity that the walls of Suzhou have been torn down. You see, the walls of Italy and France have been preserved. They have a sense of history. You can't destroy all history. The best way is to keep the ancient buildings, which is the most important thing. I think my face has completely changed since the wall was torn down.
1974, when I returned to China for the first time, I said in a speech in Tsinghua that no tall buildings should be built near the Forbidden City. This is my opinion. At that time, Vice Premier Gu Mu talked with me about this issue in the Great Hall of the People. He asked me why I shouldn't build tall buildings. I said that because the Forbidden City is a cultural relic, it is a national treasure. Now look around, the greening is good, the sky and trees are harmonious, and high-rise buildings will destroy the cultural relics of the Forbidden City. He said that what you said was the same as what Premier Zhou said. I feel very honored. I dare not say any more. I said forget it. His words are much heavier than mine.
Later, they slowly expressed this opinion in the urban planning of Beijing, saying that the height of buildings near the Forbidden City should be like this. Tall buildings can be built on the second and third ring roads, because it will not affect the Forbidden City. If you build a tall building next to the Forbidden City, such as Beijing Hotel, it will destroy cultural relics, and the cultural relics of the Forbidden City are worth studying. Hong Kong is full of tall buildings, which is not a problem, because it has no history.
The quadrangle should also be kept, and one piece should be kept. It is not enough for you to keep only a few palaces. This is not a good idea. Keep one if you want. Of course, quadrangles can no longer adapt to the present reality of life. I understand this very well. I recently talked to Jia Qinglin (then Mayor of Beijing-Editor's Note) about this issue. I said you must keep the quadrangle, keep a piece, and don't tear it down again. "I also want to do it, but how to distribute the benefits in a yard where more than a dozen people live? How to deal with it? " Jia Qinglin asked me. So he has his problems, which are not easy to solve. However, he agreed that more houses should be built nearby, so that residents of quadrangles can move to that place, and then quadrangles can be rebuilt. After the new sanitary conditions are completed, they can sell a lot of money. Overseas China people want to live in Beijing in many places, and he is likely to pay for it. This should be, because there will be no such quadrangles in the future, and there will be fewer and fewer.
Later, I.M. Pei established a scholarship of $654.38 million to help China students study in the United States. When he donated the money, he made it a rule that students can spend a summer visiting the United States after completing their research, but they must return to China to apply what they have learned-just as he wanted to do before.
Family background:1917 On April 26th, I.M. Pei was born in Guangzhou. His mother is a flute master and a devout Buddhist. She named him i.m., which means smart.
The Pei family has a history of 600 years. The first generation of ancestors came to Suzhou in the Ming Dynasty to set up stalls to practice medicine and sell herbs. Later, the descendants of Bayes developed their family business and became the suppliers of most pharmacies in Jiangnan. By the18th century, the Bei family was already a big landlord.
I.M. Pei's grandfather, Bei, first served as an official in North Korea, and later helped to establish the Shanghai Commercial Savings Bank. 19 17, founded Suzhou branch as manager.
I.M. Pei's father, Bei Zuyi, joined the accounting department of Beijing China Bank after graduating from an American university, and was later sent to Guangzhou. 1917 On April 26th, I.M. Pei was born in Guangzhou. His mother is a flute master and a devout Buddhist. She named him i.m., which means smart. I.m. Pei is a snake. It is said that people born in year of the snake are charming, intuitive, decisive, conceited and opinionated.
I.M. Pei: My mother is an accomplished female calligrapher, poet and musician. My mother's house is more artistic. After my mother died, my father was very concerned about my study and what I wanted to do in the future. I didn't know what I would do.
I.M. Pei's mother died after a long illness, so he went back to his hometown to live with his grandfather. I.M. Pei's hometown is Suzhou, a place where Wu Nong speaks softly and beautiful women come forth in large numbers. I.M. Pei's grandfather, Bei Lee Tae, was an old-school figure in the imperial era. He wears a traditional robe instead of a suit. Running a family with Confucian orthodoxy, 300 relatives gathered in the ancestral hall during ancestor worship, accompanied by music and firecrackers. In order to cultivate respect for elders, I.M. Pei must sit still in a hard-backed chair, facing his grandfather until the old man moves. Bei Leita was very strict in self-discipline, and even when he reached adulthood, his descendants were still afraid of his instructions.
I.M. Pei: On one occasion, some of our children came home a little late, so they had to sleep quietly in the vestibule for fear of disturbing the elderly.
Bei Lee Tae instilled Confucianism in I.M. Pei and cultivated noble temperament: obeying elders, avoiding insincerity, not getting angry easily, and keeping calm. Confucius said, "To govern with morality is like Beichen; Where you live, the stars are all together. " I.M. Pei's career in the United States has benefited a lot, although this country does not attach much importance to this temperament.
Xiangshan Hotel: I.M. Pei's goal for herself is actually to remind herself that nature and architecture used to be in harmony with yin and yang, and the inside and outside will always be one.
I.M. Pei designed the Xiangshan Hotel for the first time in China. He wants to repay his culture through architecture and help the architectural community in China explore a new way. He wants to revitalize the features that ordinary people can still understand-not the red walls and yellow tiles of pedantic palaces and temples, but the white walls and gray bricks of ordinary people. He said, just like I won't look for Italian roots in Michelangelo's works, I will go to Florence to see ordinary people's houses, and buildings must come from people's houses. He believes that this is by no means a relic of the past, but a reminder of the strength of the present.
During her stay in Xiangshan, I.M. Pei usually conveys her ideas to designers, then goes to do other work, and then comes back regularly to monitor the progress and report to customers. Xiangshan Hotel is his personal expression of new China, so he managed it well. People were surprised to see him scratching his head on the drawing table of the company with a pencil in his hand. This is the only project he has personally presided over in recent years. Every two hours, he holds a meeting with his partners with design drawings and elevation drawings, and works for a long time.
In the west, large buildings are often presented in front of people with a positive face, but this is in Xiangshan and spreading euphemistically. According to I.M. Pei's idea, the guests first walked through the archway with five red flags and came to the front hall with gray floor tiles. In front of them, they saw a white plaster wall with traditional octagonal and plum blossom windows. When people walk in, they can see the hall around the skylight of I.M. Pei's typical spatial structure. This style is between Suzhou Garden and the atrium of DC National Art Museum. This is a place to drink tea and enjoy green bamboo and pond fish in the shade of trees.
I.M. Pei: In the west, windows are windows to let in sunshine and fresh air. But for China people, it is a picture frame, and the garden is always outside it.
It is very important to learn from the landscape architecture in China. For example, like the big garden in France, Versailles, you can see everything clearly when you stand there. However, the gardens in China are full of twists and turns. You have to bend down to see one scene and walk a few more steps to see another scene. This is very clever, and it has a little influence on my building. One more thing is very interesting. When you go to a China Garden, you will see the road facing the door as soon as you enter, and you will definitely not get through. You have to walk around the path for half a day to get to the big house, which is very similar to people in China.
A long row of carefully planned white buildings, all no more than four stories high, are decorated with plaid patterns and octagonal windows and meander along the atrium. It is said that this arrangement can exorcise evil spirits. This illusory and quiet exhibition hall is both familiar and unfamiliar to China people. Because this is a building made by I.M. Pei with reference to the flat-topped white walls in Suzhou, it seems out of place in Beijing. Some people are flustered by I.M. Pei's deliberate frugality. "I.M. Pei wants to express real beauty," explained his assistant Fred Fang. "Like a girl without lipstick."
I.M. Pei's goal for herself is actually to remind herself that nature and architecture used to be in harmony with yin and yang, and the inside and outside will always be one.
I.M. Pei: In the past, if there was no garden in front of a scholar's study, it could not be called a study. The two must be combined.
According to this style, I.M. Pei designed a western-style room for Xiangshan Hotel, where you can browse 1 1 beautiful flowers and trees. The winding garden path is covered with exquisite plum blossom and bamboo patterns, with colored boulders on both sides, which were collected by his American assistant on a riverbed near the Vietnamese border.
I.M. Pei: The local villagers have never seen foreigners. When my American assistant rode a mule to that place, the villagers specially killed pigs to entertain him, and there was blood everywhere. He didn't understand the situation and came back to tell me that he was very scared and thought, Oh, my God, they are going to kill me. The villagers were also surprised to find that foreigners had to spend thousands of dollars to buy their stones. As a result, all the old ladies and children ran to the river to collect stones.
The construction of Xiangshan Hotel began at 1980, when China was very different from China now. At that time, few new buildings could be built in China, and the technology was similar. But this is not the biggest problem. The biggest problem is management. I.M. Pei brought back a vacuum cleaner from America. At that time, there were few or no such things in China. Always replace the filter after using the vacuum cleaner. They didn't change it. The motor burned out.
I'm Pei: I've been to Beijing many times, but Xiangshan Hotel seldom comes back. Once, my wife saw that the windows of Xiangshan Hotel were dirty. She said it wouldn't work. She couldn't see the scenery outside. She went to wipe it, which is true, but it is a transitional period. China today is very different from 20 years ago. Now it's happy to go back. I think this country is making progress.
The influence of American Xiangshan Hotel is also very great. Postmodernists say this is I.M. Pei's surrender. They believe that modernism finally adopted the historical basis and decoration. I.M. Pei disagrees with this statement. He thinks that modernism has not failed. Of course, it has changed, becoming better and freer.