Bei Jia Zushang started his medical career in Beilantang, Zhejiang Province, and later settled in Suzhou. During the Qianlong period, he became one of the four richest men in Suzhou with Chinese medicine.
I.M. Pei's grandfather, Bei, is the earliest financier in China, the founder and director of Shanghai Commercial Savings Bank, and concurrently the manager of Suzhou Branch. It also contributed to the establishment of China Travel Agency and served as the manager of Suzhou Branch of China Travel Agency.
It is no exaggeration for Bei Jia to be called a financier, because Bei Lee Tae's five sons and four grandchildren are engaged in financial work. The third son, Bei Zuyi, successively served as the manager of Guangzhou, Hongkong and Shanghai branches of China Bank and the deputy general manager of the head office. 1946 became the governor of the central bank and was called "financial giant" and "exchange wizard". He is Pan An's father.
While studying in Boxi Academy, Bei Zuyi met a well-known family-Zhuang family, whose father was a German businessman, a foreign firm comprador and the president of the Red Cross. The banker was good at playing the flute, believed in Buddhism and got married soon. 19 15 Bei Zuyi was the general manager of China Bank Guangzhou Branch.1917 On April 26th, I.M. Pei was born in Guangzhou. The name was given by my mother, which means a bright lettering, which seems to imply that I.M. Pei is bound to embark on the road of architecture.
With the constant change of father's work, I.M. Pei and her mother are constantly changing their life scenes. 19 18, 1 year-old I.M. Pei went to Hong Kong with her parents.
I.M. Pei's mother died of cancer in Suzhou at the age of 13. "I'm sorry. At that age, I already understood the importance of my mother, so her death hit me hard. She used to be very important to me. I think her lifestyle has a great influence on me. She is very popular with her friends and has many friends. I admire her. Mother and her friends often get together to talk about things for someone's aunt's arrival. I have been fortunate enough to listen to some of their conversations, and I can feel the deep friendship between them. I think this should make you feel my mother's personality. She treats people with enthusiasm and others respect her, which has a deep influence on me. "
"My mother is an accomplished female calligrapher, poet and musician. Therefore, the family on the mother side is more artistic. " "My mother is a devout Buddhist. I remember that she often took me to the temple where she often practiced. I always sit there for a long time. This is one of my mother's teachings: learn to listen in silence. " My mother's lifestyle has a great influence on I.M. Pei. In his later career, he was good at meditation and listening to the environment, and paying attention to the integration of architecture and natural environment became a typical style of his design.
After my mother died, my father was busy with work, and I.M. Pei and my sister-in-law lived under the care of the housekeeper for three or four years. At that time, he was studying in Shanghai St. John's Middle School. Bezui, who lost his wife in middle age, was very depressed. In order to adjust his status, the bank sent him to travel to Europe. In France, he accidentally met Jiang's daughter, the diplomat Jiang. At that time, Jiang 2 1 year-old was studying in France.
Young Jiang can be said to be a standard Bai Fumei, born beautiful, intelligent and proficient in English and French, so she is also called "Miss Jiang Si" because she ranks fourth. 16 years old, went to Europe with his parents and studied in France. From 65438 to 0927, Jiang returned to China and became a social butterfly in Beijing, Jiangsu and Shanghai with her youthful beauty and fluent English and French. At the foreign minister's banquet, she met Zhang Xueliang and became her "Miss Jiang Si". When she learned that Zhang Xueliang also had a "Miss Zhao Si", she resolutely left him to study in Europe. At this time, she met Bezuyi, and their mentality at that time was really in the same boat, caring for each other and beautiful.
Although the two families were evenly matched, at this time, Bezuhi already had several children, and this relationship was naturally opposed by Jiang's parents, but Jiang's attitude was firm, and finally his parents compromised. 1932 In the spring, Bezuhi and Jiang held a grand wedding in Paris. In the same year, 40-year-old Bezuhi became the deputy governor of China Bank.
After returning home, Jiang hoped that the children would live separately from them, so I.M. Pei stayed in Suzhou every holiday.
Suzhou City has at least 50 well-preserved private gardens in Qing Dynasty, including Lion Grove.
Suzhou garden art has a far-reaching influence on Pei Ming's design. Later, he said: "An architect must work hard (I have made such efforts) to participate in this way: even if the building he designed is fully harmonious with the flowing water there and becomes a popular expression ... it took me some time to understand this design feature-designing according to the charm of the garden in my childhood. And once you design a building according to that charm, you will feel how insignificant you are. " "It made me realize that man and nature exist together, not just nature. Creativity is the crystallization of human ingenuity and nature, which I learned from Suzhou gardens. "
I.M. Pei, a student in Shanghai, was exposed to new architecture, art and lifestyle. He was fascinated by American movies, marveled at the 24-story international hotel, and even thought about it secretly, and drew an architectural map of the 24-story international hotel himself. "Most of the houses in Suzhou are on the first, second and third floors, which are already very high; On the other hand, buildings with floors 10, 20 and 30 are being built in Shanghai. I fell in love with architecture. "
After I.M. Pei graduated from high school, his father wanted him to study economics in England, but I obviously wanted to do architecture: "I am addicted to the idea of building a building as high as a hotel. At that time, the idea was as exciting to me as a trip to the moon is to young people today. I decided that this is the job I want to do. " He chose the architectural design major of the University of Pennsylvania and started the century journey of the master architect.
1933, a "silver tide" broke out in China, and Bezuy led the Monetary Reform Committee to turn the tide and solve the crisis. Since then, the currency of China has been completely changed into paper money. After the "Xi Incident", Yu Fengzhi invited Mrs. Shi Yun from Beijiang to participate in the rescue. Bei Zuyi visited Zhang Xueliang with Jiang through his friendship with Dai Li.
From 65438 to 0948, Bezuy went to the United States to visit China as the head of the technical delegation. Stay in America from now on. Until 1954, he was a director of Bank of China. The relationship between their family and Zhang Xueliang has never changed. Jiang can fly from America to Taipei to invite Zhang Xueliang to dinner.
1At the beginning of 982, China Bank invited I.M. Pei to design the building of Bank of China Hong Kong Branch, which became a classic of modern architecture: BOC Building. In the same year, Bezuzzi died in new york at the age of 90.
This is a difficult design. There are many 40-storey and 50-storey buildings around the site. If you want to stand out, you must build the building higher. However, in the case of typhoons in Hong Kong all the year round, the stability of the 70-story building needs to be considered, and the budget is only $65,438+300 million. His father told him: "The bank must look very safe."
I.M. Pei's design is deeply loved by Chinese people, and buildings have mushroomed. He said, "There's an old saying in China, the lotus never touches the mud. We hope that the building has the same qualifications as Lotus. "
People who believe in geomantic omen in Hong Kong think it is a three-edged steel knife, one of which points to the Governor's Office, the other to the building of HSBC Head Office, and the other to the Yangtze River Group Center in Li Ka-shing. In order to resolve these killings, the Governor's Office planted willows in the direction facing the China Bank Building to resolve them. HSBC countered by installing two fort decorations on the roof facing the Bank of China Building, and Li Ka-shing built its new headquarters into a cube with square shields around it. The Citibank building next to it was designed as an open book, also to stop the murderous look.
Regarding Feng Shui, I.M. Pei explained, "China people in Hong Kong are the most superstitious people you can find. There, feng shui is another big business. Mr. Feng Shui there is like a lawyer here: they are everywhere, and you can't move without asking their advice. I know I will get into trouble, but I can't predict what kind of trouble it will be. " "How can I believe those things? Despite this, Feng Shui is part of my education and part of architecture. "
Jiang He has a daughter. Like stepsons and stepdaughters, daughters go back to accompany their mothers every weekend. After the death of Bei Zuyi, there was nothing on Jiang's business card except the word "Bei", which expressed her love for this family.
1990, Zhang Xueliang regained his freedom and was sent to new york by Miss Zhao Si the following year. He lived in Bei Mansion for three months. Mrs. Bei arranged all his schedules, and Zhang Xueliang was interviewed by Columbia University in the United States, which gave him the opportunity to say what he had not been able to say for decades and left an authoritative "oral history" for the world. Zhang Xueliang also made no secret that Mrs. Beijiang Shi Yun was his favorite girlfriend.
The excitement of Bei's family goes far beyond this. Everyone in their family is a contemporary history. The so-called noble families, like the Bayesian family, have been adding color and ink to the times from generation to generation. Many people question the lack of pioneering spirit in Pei's design, which may be related to his family background. He knows the overall situation, knows the weight, can mediate, and is good at resolving. They are not pure artists, but people who can deliver solutions.