The year of 2017 marked the 100th birthday of the honoring Chinese-American architect Ieoh Ming Pei.
From museums to business headquarters, Pei had designed many notable buildings around the world throughout his long professional career. According to the organizers of ''Rethinking Pei: A Centenary Symposium (百年纪念座谈会)” held that year, Pei remained one of the most celebrated architects of the 20th and early 21st centuries.
The Hong Kong Bank of China Tower is one of his most famous works in Asia. As the bank itself also celebrated its centenary in 2017, it’s worth examining the building's historical and architectural background to gain a deeper understanding of the architect who changed Hong Kong's skyline forever.
The Bank of China Tower (BOC Tower) was completed in 1989, a year which the "New York Times" called ,•the year of I.M. Pei.” For it was in this same year that Pei also completed the glass pyramid of the Louvre Museum in Paris, the Meyerson Symphony Center in Dallas, the Creative Artist Agency Headquarters in Los Angeles, and other marvellous architectures all around the world.
Pei was commissioned (委托)in 1982 by the Beijing-based Bank of China to design itsheadquarters in Hong Kong, but construction did not start until 1985.
There were many reasons for the delay. One of the biggest was the huge challenges posed by the location. The land parcel had been the address of a Victorian building which served as a prison during Japanese occupation of Hong Kong between 1941 and 1945. This terrible heritage might be one of the reasons why it was dismantled in 1982.
For I.M. Pei, the challenge of the site was not its past, but its present: the relatively small land parcel was surrounded on three sides by elevated roadways serving high-speed heavy traffic, meaning there was no possible public pedestrian access. Then there was its awkward trapezoidal (梯形)shape and the fact that the site also had a deep north-south height difference.
Another challenge was the unavoidable comparison of the BOC Tower to the neighboring Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank Headquarters(HSBC), which was also under construction. A spectacular building generously funded, its architect Norman Foster was simply told to create “the best bank building in the world.” At that time it was also the world's most expensive building, costing $668 million. The Bank of China Tower's budget was approximately one fifth of the budget allowed by HSBC.
The Hong Kong government had promised HSBC that no tall buildings would ever be built in front of its headquarters. Besides, in between the site of the Bank of China and the harbor, there were already a few buildings over 70 meters tall blocking views.
Recognizing that going tall was the only way to create a landmark at this site with his budget, Pei came up with an architectural tower design that was simple, expressive, innovative, and upon its completion, the tallest building outside of America and the fourth tallest in the world.
After the Bank of China officially moved into the tower in 1991, noted architect and critic Peter Blake visited the building and declared it to be "probably the most innovative skyscraper structure built anywhere to date."
Now 30 years after the building’s construction, the Bank of China Tower continues to offer valuable lessons of architectural and structural creativity under the most demanding conditions. Most importantly, the tower has become one of the most important cultural icons for the city of Hong Kong.
1. Which of the following descriptions of I.M. Pei is NOT true?| A．I.M. Pei completed the glass pyramid of the Louvre Museum in Paris in 1989. |
| B．I.M. Pei changed Hong Kong's skyline because he constructed the BOC tower. |
| C．I.M. Pei was universally acknowledged as one of the most celebrated architect. |
| D．I.M. Pei began the construction of BOC Tower directly he got the commission. |
| A．It was the 30th anniversary of the completion of the Bank of China ToweF’s construction. |
| B．The Bank of China officially began to use it as its headquarter in Hong Kong in this year. |
| C．Both Ieoh Ming Pei and Hong Kong and Shangliai Bank celebrated their 100th birthday. |
| D．A Centenary Symposium celebrating the 100th birthday of I. M. Pei was held that year. |
| A．The shape of the land parcel was a challenge to the architect. |
| B．The building of the Bank of China Tower was generously funded. |
| C．The heavy traffic surrounding the site stopped people from entering it. |
| D．The site had been a prison during Japanese occupation of Hong Kong. |
| A．tear down | B．take down | C．tear up | D．take up |
| A．⑦ | B．⑧ | C．⑨ | D．⑩ |
| A．only by getting over great difficulties can architects like LM. Pei achieve success |
| B．the Bank of China Tower was a great masterpiece showing I.M. Pei's creativity |
| C．compared with neighbouring HSBC, BOC Tower is much more extraordinary |
| D．it was the design of the BOC Tower that made I.M. Pei become world-famous |
2 . 24 hours in western Sydney: what to do, where to go
On a recent weekend, my boyfriend and I decided to explore the area for the first time.
Friday
6 p.m. — Check in at Atura Blacktown hotel
After an easy 40-minute train trip from Central Station to Blacktown (about $5 one way with the Opal smartcard), we catch a taxi (about $20) to western Sydney’s newest hotel, the Atura Blacktown. It’s a sleek but welcoming hotel with an open-plan lobby that incorporates an inhouse restaurant and a comfortable lounge area. Upstairs, we quickly warm to our modern guestroom, which features reliable, free WiFi, free movies on a large wall-mounted TV, and in the bathroom Malin+Goetz toiletries(洗漱用品). It’s good value at about $160 for a king room.
8 p.m. — Dinner and a drive-in movie
The hotel’s Roadhouse Bar and Grill has an upscale menu (mains $25 — $40 per person) but a casual atmosphere, with an open kitchen and families seated at several tables. We’ve been told not to fill up on dinner so we reluctantly leave our tender scotch fillet(鱼片) and expertly pan-fried barramundi unfinished. At the reception, we pick up keys to the hotel’s white Cadillac, which is parked out front, and drive around the corner to the Skyline Drive-In ($20 for one car with two passengers).
Saturday
9 a.m. — Feasting in Bonnyrigg
Everywhere we go, there is food. At the temple, we watch a famous Laotion chef prepare pawpaw salad, while at the mosque(清真寺) we are offered feather-light fairy floss. Later, in a low-ceilinged Asian grocer, we are fed sublime rice-paper rolls by a proprietor who speaks five languages. Those who dismiss ordinary Australians as conservative and intolerant have clearly not visited Bonnyrigg.
6 p.m. — People-watching at The Emporium
In Parramatta, the venue(场所) of the moment is The Emporium, a 150-seat exposed-brick space with a mod-Oz menu which leans Mediterranean. Unlike many of the more casual places we visit over the weekend, The Emporium has a decidedly grown-up atmosphere, full of well-dressed couples and smart wait staff. Dishes like a delicate stew of Moreton Bay bugs ($36) and truffle-stuffed chicken breast (also $36) are delicious. Don’t expect to get a table on Saturday night unless you book ahead.
1. How much did the author and her boyfriend have to pay at least on Friday?
| A．$216. | B．$226. | C．$332. | D．$260. |
| A．get warm in modern guestrooms | B．overeat delicious dinner |
| C．hire a car to see movies | D．feel unfriendliness from ordinary Australians |
