M+, Asia’s global museum of contemporary visual culture in the West Kowloon Cultural District (WestK) in Hong Kong, is pleased to announce that its critically acclaimed Special Exhibition I. M. Pei: Life Is Architecture will travel to Power Station of Art (PSA) in Shanghai from Saturday, 26 April to Sunday, 27 July 2025. 

The exhibition will continue to tour globally after the Shanghai presentation. 

I. M. Pei: Life Is Architecture was initiated by M+ and first held in Hong Kong from June 2024 to January 2025. 

PSA and M+ are co-organizers of the Shanghai show. The exhibition is one of the results of the two institutions' cooperation, which was described in a 2024 Memorandum of Understanding.

Installation view of I. M. Pei: Life Is Architecture, 2024. Photography © Dan Leung. Image courtesy of M+, Hong Kong

On Friday, April 25, 2025, PSA held a discussion titled "Rethinking Legacy, Biases, Practice: I. M. Pei and China" to commemorate the exhibition's launch.

As part of the West Kowloon Cultural District Authority's WestK Shanghai Week 2025, which runs from June 18 to June 22, 2025, the two institutions will also jointly host a free public discussion on Thursday, June 19.

The exhibition—seven years in the making—is the first full-scale retrospective of Chinese American architect Ieoh Ming Pei (1917–2019), widely known as I. M. Pei, one of the most influential architects of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. 

During the six-month exhibition period from June 2024 to January 2025, I. M. Pei: Life Is Architecture, which was curated by Shirley Surya, Curator, Design and Architecture, M+, and Aric Chen, General and Artistic Director, Nieuwe Instituut (New Institute), Rotterdam, and incoming Director, Zaha Hadid Foundation, London, welcomed over 225,000 visitors to M+.

Installation view of I. M. Pei: Life Is Architecture, 2024. Photography © Dan Leung. Image courtesy of M+, Hong Kong

Pei's well-known projects, which span seven decades and have a remarkably broad geographic scope, include the Museum of Islamic Art in Doha, the Bank of China Tower in Hong Kong, the modernization of the Grand Louvre in Paris, and the National Gallery of Art East Building in Washington, D.C. His reputation and place in architectural history and popular culture were cemented by these seminal projects. Power relationships, intricate geopolitics, and global cultural traditions are all interwoven in his life and work. The modern world was made possible by his transcultural worldview.

The exhibition examines Pei's life and work in detail using six focal points that not only characterize his distinct style but also position his architectural endeavors in relation to social, cultural, and biographical developments, demonstrating the interdependence of architecture and life. 

The retrospective, which was organized with assistance from the Estate of I. M. Pei and Pei Cobb Freed & Partners, the architectural firm Pei cofounded, includes over 400 items from institutional and private holdings, many of which are being shown for the first time in mainland China. The exhibition includes original drawings, architectural models, photographs, films, and archival documentation.

The opening roundtable "Rethinking Legacy, Biases, Practice: I. M. Pei and China" on Friday, 25 April 2025 at PSA featured architectural practitioners, educators, and critics Ding Wowo, Huang Wenjing, Liu Kecheng, Liu Yichun, Lin Bing, and James Wei Ke, moderated by Shirley Surya.  

Installation view of I. M. Pei: Life Is Architecture, 2024. Photography © Wilson Lam. Image courtesy of M+, Hong Kong

"M+’s critically acclaimed exhibition I. M. Pei: Life Is Architecture is the second Special Exhibition curated by the museum to embark on a world tour after the enormous success of Yayoi Kusama: 1945 to Now in Spain and Portugal in 2023 and 2024. Seven years in the making, the exhibition distils extensive research and profound insights, exemplifying M+’s curatorial expertise and vision," said Suhanya Raffel, Museum Director, M+.

"We are delighted to partner with Power Station of Art to bring this retrospective to a broader audience, particularly in light of Pei’s formative years and architectural projects in China. This exhibition reintroduces Pei and his significant contributions while illuminating often-overlooked facets of his remarkable career," Raffel added.

"Pei’s architecture emerges from his mobility across diverse cultures. Rather than being overwhelmed by nostalgia, dislocation and alienation have shaped his unique philosophy of life and his distinctive approach to meet the diverse needs of his clients. Humility, pragmatism, wisdom, and generosity define both his life spirit and the cultural essence of his architecture," said Gong Yan, Director, Power Station of Art.

I. M. Pei: Life Is Architecture at M+, 2024 Photography © Winnie Yeung @ Visual Voices Image courtesy of M+, Hong Kong

On Thursday, June 19, 2025, as part of WestK Shanghai Week 2025, M+ and PSA will co-organize a free public discussion with artist Xu Bing and architect Li Chung (Sandi) Pei, son of I. M. Pei, partner and founder of PEI Architects.

The conversation, which will be facilitated by Shirley Surya, will explore I. M. Pei's fascination with the art of his era, his involvement with certain artistic movements, and his partnerships with artists on the architectural designs of his structures.

After Shanghai, I. M. Pei: Life Is Architecture will travel to Qatar Museums Gallery, Al Riwaq in Doha from November 2025 to February 2026 as the next stop of its world tour. 

The top image in the article: I. M. Pei: Life Is Architecture at Power Station of Art, Shanghai. Image: Irving Penn, Vogue © Condé Nast.

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