Power, Politics, and Patronage

I. M. Pei’s career was marked by technical mastery and ingenious problem-solving, as well as luck and persistence in engaging with powerful clients and the politics of major projects. From mayors to museum directors, Pei had a knack for establishing himself as a trusted collaborator with an earnest sensitivity to their needs. Often, he was able to persuade his clients to pursue something more ambitious than they had imagined, despite the associated costs. In his long career, these ambitious commissions transformed cities and institutions around the world. At the same time, Pei contended with disagreements with clients and opposition from the public over the changes his projects would bring.

Pei and the Louvre: An Unprecedented Commission

In 1981, French President François Mitterrand announced the expansion of the Louvre Museum and appointed Émile Biasini to head the project. Impressed by Pei’s design for the National Gallery of Art (NGA) East Building, Biasini recommended a direct commission of the architect. Pei accepted, but only after conducting four months of on-site study to propose a design that unified the existing buildings into a single complex. It required moving the Ministry of Finance out of the museum’s northern Richelieu Wing and excavating a parking lot to create two underground levels and a glass pyramid at the centre of the Cour Napoléon, the main court. In addition to these huge undertakings, Pei had to convince the French public to embrace his startling design for their beloved landmark.

Battle of the Pyramid

Pei’s design for the Louvre Museum faced intense public criticism, which reached its height in 1984 and 1985. The French press fuelled the controversy and called the Louvre the ‘house of the dead’, comparing it to ancient Egyptian tombs and François Mitterrand to a megalomaniacal pharaoh. An association was founded to mobilise opposition to the proposal in the name of ‘rescuing’ Paris. Right-wing politicians even weaponised Pei’s design in their fight against Mitterrand’s Socialist Party.

The Turning Point

Paris mayor Jacques Chirac expressed support for Pei’s proposal but requested a full-scale mock-up of the glass pyramid, which was also an attempt to win over the public. To achieve this, four carbon-fibre cables were suspended from a crane to simulate the pyramid’s ridges in the same proportions at its exact location. The interior of the mock-up was left empty to show how the final glass pyramid would not visually obstruct the existing site. Over 60,000 Parisians witnessed the exercise, leading to Chirac’s endorsement of Pei’s proposal. The tide finally turned in favour of Pei’s design. When the museum opened in 1989 and the renovation of the Richelieu Wing was completed in 1993, the modernised Louvre became a new source of cultural pride for Paris.

John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum (1964–1979), Dorchester, Massachusetts

Following the 1963 assassination of US President John F. Kennedy, his family searched for an architect to design his presidential library, which included a museum, an archive, and a school for politics. As one of the 18 leading architects invited, Pei chose to be candid and transparent about his limited experience in monumental projects in a meeting with the president’s widow, Jacqueline. But Pei’s candour established a rapport with her, and she selected him for the design. The eventual complex took 15 years to complete due to multiple site changes and unexpected shifts in government, and—perhaps the most hampering of all—the loss of Jacqueline as the key public champion after her remarriage in 1968.

Dallas City Hall (1966–1977), Dallas, Texas

In 1966, Dallas mayor Erik Jonsson selected Pei to design the new city hall. Reeling from the 1963 assassination of US President John F. Kennedy, Jonsson sought to reinvent the city as progressive and forward-thinking. Pei’s plan detailed a top-heavy, exposed concrete building that slopes inwards at its base. Pei also persuaded city officials to secure an adjacent lot for a public plaza—the first in the city centre—anchored by a Henry Moore sculpture and native trees. Despite the high costs of construction, the project was supported by city officials who sought funding through creative means, like generating revenue from underground parking below the plaza.

Fragrant Hill Hotel (1979–1982), Beijing

As part of the 1978 Four Modernisations Policy to rejuvenate China’s economy across agriculture, industry, defence, and science and technology, officials invited Pei to design a high-rise hotel in Beijing’s city centre to help drive tourism. Instead, Pei proposed a low-lying hotel in the mountains, northwest of Beijing, at the former imperial hunting grounds, to safeguard the Forbidden City and preserve its relationship with the open sky. His choice led to a change in policy on building around the Forbidden City, dubbed the Pei Height Limitation. However, the Fragrant Hill Hotel project was not smooth sailing. The government insisted on managing the hotel despite an agreement with the investor to bring on an experienced operational partner, leading to conflicts and mismanagement that soured Pei’s vision.

Miho Museum (1991–1997), Shigaraki, Shiga

Shinji Shumeikai, founded by the Japanese heiress of the Toyobo Textile business Koyama Mihoko, is a religious organisation devoted to enlightenment through the contemplation of beauty. When Koyama approached Pei to design a bell tower to complete the campus of the organisation’s sanctuary, Pei was hesitant to take on such a small project. However, a site visit convinced him to accept the commission. It marked the beginning of an enduring partnership that led to Pei’s capstone projects: Miho Museum in 1997 and the Miho Institute of Aesthetics Chapel in 2012.

Museum of Islamic Art (MIA) (2000–2008), Doha

The Museum of Islamic Art (MIA) was the first of many museums planned by Qatar Museums (QM) to make the country an international cultural centre. Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, the then Emir of Qatar, persuaded Pei to come out of retirement and take the commission. The museum had decided that a previously selected design was inadequate in representing their vision of Islamic art as a regional and universal heritage. Inspired by the formal logic of the ninth-century Mosque of Ibn Tulun in Cairo, Pei’s design progresses from an octagon to a square and finally a circle. This geometric transition was one of the reasons why Pei’s design was considered regionally specific yet with a global resonance.

National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) (1961–1967), Boulder, Colorado

The National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in Boulder, Colorado, was Pei’s first large commission outside of an urban setting. Impressed by Pei’s reputation for working closely with clients and building with concrete to meet budget constraints, NCAR Director Walter Orr Roberts entrusted Pei to design a building in harmony with the surrounding Flatirons rock formations. Pei’s holistic plan included a curved entrance road to the complex, presenting a panoramic view of the mesa before the building comes into view. Roberts also wanted Pei to design a workplace conducive to scientific research and contemplation.