Architect Sandi Pei’s design challenge... how to adapt an art deco ‘masterpiece’ into a private banking centre

It is not easy to design a new building from scratch, but it can be even more challenging to renovate a heritage building back to its glory, according to architect Sandi Pei Li-chung who is overseeing the renovation of the historic Bank of China building.

Pei, 67, is the youngest son of I.M. Pei, the architect behind the Bank of China Tower in Garden Road, which opened on May 17, 1990, after a four year construction process.

Pei, who is the second generation of architects in the family, is working to transform the historic Bank of China building into the regional headquarters for the bank’s private banking unit.

“I don’t know how much you know of the challenges of introducing private banking facilities into the old Bank of China building,” Pei said.

Bank of China (Hong Kong) which this year will celebrate its centenary in Hong Kong, hired Pei to redesign the ground floor, second floor and eighth floor of the 15-storey old building. The renovation is expected to be completed in June.