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, 10 August 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. The exhibition in Shanghai is co-organised by PSA and M+. The show is one of the outcomes of the collaboration between the two museums outlined in a Memorandum of Understanding signed in 2024. To mark the opening of the exhibition, PSA will host a roundtable titled ‘Rethinking Legacy, Biases, Practice: I. M. Pei and China’ on Friday, 25 April 2025. The two museums will also co-organise a free public talk on Thursday, 19 June 2025 as part of WestK Shanghai Week 2025, organised by the West Kowloon Cultural District Authority from 18 to 22 June 2025.

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. 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, I. M. Pei: Life Is Architecture received more than 225,000 visitors at M+ during the six-month exhibition period from June 2024 to January 2025.

Pei’s high-profile projects were realised over seven decades with an exceptionally wide geographic reach, including the National Gallery of Art East Building in Washington, D.C., the modernisation of the Grand Louvre in Paris, the Bank of China Tower in Hong Kong, and the Museum of Islamic Art in Doha. These landmark projects solidified his legacy and position in architectural history and popular culture. His life and work weave together a tapestry of power dynamics, geopolitical complexities, and cultural traditions around the world. His transcultural vision laid the foundation for the contemporary world.

The exhibition takes a close look at Pei’s life and work through six areas of focus that not only define his unique practice but also place his architectural projects in dialogue with social, cultural, and biographical trajectories, showing architecture and life to be inseparable. Organised with the support of the Estate of I. M. Pei and Pei Cobb Freed & Partners, the architectural firm Pei cofounded, the retrospective features more than 400 objects, including original drawings, architectural models, photographs, films, and archival documentation from institutional and private holdings, many of them exhibited for the first time in mainland China.

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

Suhanya Raffel, Museum Director, M+, says, ‘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. 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.’

Gong Yan, Director, Power Station of Art, says, ‘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.’

As part of the WestK Shanghai Week 2025, M+ and PSA will co-organise a free public talk on Thursday, 19 June 2025, featuring architect Li Chung (Sandi) Pei, I. M. Pei’s son, partner and founder of PEI Architects, and artist Xu Bing. Moderated by Shirley Surya, the discussion will delve into I. M. Pei’s interest in the art of his time, his engagement with certain artistic practices, and his collaborations with artists on the designs of his buildings.

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.

About M+

M+ is Asia’s global museum of contemporary visual culture. Located in Hong Kong’s West Kowloon Cultural District (WestK), it is dedicated to collecting, exhibiting, and interpreting visual art, design and architecture, moving image, and Hong Kong visual culture of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. The landmark M+ building on Hong Kong’s Victoria Harbourfront was designed by the world-renowned architectural firm Herzog & de Meuron in partnership with TFP Farrells and Arup. It spans a total floor area of 65,000 square metres, featuring thirty-three galleries alongside a Learning Hub, Moving Image Centre, Research Centre, and Roof Garden, among other event and programming spaces. The M+ Facade is one of the largest LED screens in the world, showcasing commissioned artworks on the Hong Kong skyline every evening. The museum stewards a multidisciplinary permanent collection that includes objects from regions across Asia and beyond. A highlight is the M+ Sigg Collection, one of the world’s most extensive collections of Chinese contemporary art. Today, M+ is a nexus for researching and presenting contemporary visual culture, inspiring thought and curiosity.

About the West Kowloon Cultural District (WestK)

WestK is one of the largest and most ambitious cultural hubs in the world and Hong Kong’s new cultural tourism landmark, spanning forty hectares alongside Victoria Harbour. WestK comprises a mix of landmark arts and cultural facilities, including world-class museums M+ and the Hong Kong Palace Museum, intricately designed performing arts venues the Xiqu Centre and Freespace, the eleven-hectare Art Park with a waterfront promenade, and the upcoming WestK Performing Arts Centre.

Hosting over 1,000 exhibitions, performances, programmes, and events each year, WestK provides a vital platform for both emerging and established artists. WestK welcomes more than ten million visitors each year, evolving as the international cultural brand of Hong Kong and strengthening the city’s strategic role as an East-meets-West centre for international cultural exchange.

About Power Station of Art

Established on 1 October 2012, the Power Station of Art (PSA) is the first state-run museum dedicated to contemporary art in Chinese mainland . It is also home to the Shanghai Biennale. Standing tall by the Huangpu River, PSA occupies an area of 41,000 square metres. With an internal height of twenty-seven metres, the museum now houses exhibition spaces totalling 15,000 square metres. Its 165-metre chimney, an independent exhibition space, has become an integral part of Shanghai’s world-famous skyline.

Renovated from the former Nanshi Power Plant, PSA was once the Pavilion of Future during the 2010 Shanghai World Expo. The museum has witnessed the city’s transformation from the industry age to the IT era, providing a rich source of inspiration for artists with its simple yet impactful architecture. As a catalyst for Shanghai’s new urban culture, PSA regards continuous innovation and progress as essential to its long-term vitality. The museum strives to provide an open platform for the public to learn about and appreciate contemporary art, breaking down barriers between life and art while promoting cooperation and knowledge exchange between different schools of art and culture.