The Complex Relationship between OCBC Building and I. M. Pei

Did I. M. Pei somehow leave his name on his buildings in Singapore?

An outstanding architect not only creates uniquely designed buildings, but is also able to endow it with life and energy. Consider Conrad Centennial Hotel: its exterior design seems to display the number “13” – a controversial design for a hotel since Western society considers the number 13 to be unlucky! In Chinese culture, however, 13 is a lucky number and sounds like “perennial growth”. In predominantly Chinese Singapore, this design might even be influenced by feng shui.Another famous building in Singapore also features an exterior that looks like a Chinese character.

Have you guessed it yet?It’s OCBC Building! In olden times, people used shells as a form of currency. As one of Singapore’s foremost banking institutions, OCBC chose to use the traditional Chinese character for shell, “貝” for the design of its headquarters to reflect its line of business. An outstanding architect certainly knows how to integrate details like these in a creative and artistic manner.What’s more, OCBC Building is located at the “Carp Jumping the Dragon Gate” formation, further helping it to shine.It shouldn’t come as a surprise that OCBC Building was designed by the famous Chinese-American architect I. M. Pei.

Coincidentally, the Chinese character “bei” that inspired the design of OCBC Building is the same as that for I. M. Pei’s surname.Was the character meant to reflect OCBC’s banking business or did I. M. Pei deliberately leave his signature on the building? If we combine the 3 main buildings I. M. Pei has designed in Singapore, you’ll see why the latter conjecture makes sense.

OCBC Building was I. M. Pei’s first big project in Singapore. Completed in 1976,its concept was likely meant to reflect OCBC’s line of business as well as Pei’s Chinese surname. With his second and third projects – Swissôtel The Stamford in 1986 and The Gateway in 1990 – his designs seem to represent the Chinese characters for his name (“Ieoh” and “Ming”). The three buildings even form a sequential line when seen from overhead. Coincidence or creativity? It’s your call.