The Bank of China Tower is one of Hong Kong’s most distinctive and impressive landmarks on its famous skyline. It is home to the Bank of China and situated on Hong Kong Island in the Central and Western District. The 72-story, 305 meter (1000 foot) tall building was designed by world-renowned architect I.M. Pei and was the first building that was not in the United States to be over 1,000 feet tall. The Bank of China Tower is the third tallest tower in Hong Kong, behind Central Plaza and Two International Finance Centre.
Construction began on the Bank of China Tower in April 1985 and the building opened in May 1990. The Bank of China Tower was the tallest building in both Hong Kong and all of Asia from 1989 to 1992. The owner of the building was the Bank of China, Hong Kong Branch. The bank occupies the four upper and bottom nineteen stories and the remaining floors are leased out. The tower is 305 meters (1,000 feet) tall and has two masts that reach to 367 meters (1205 feet) high. The building is situated near the Central MTR station.
The Bank of China Tower project posed several challenges for its architects and developers. The biggest challenge was to construct a supertall skyscraper that was located in a typhoon area with a budget of only $130 million. The solution to these challenges involved an asymmetrical tower that consisted of 4 vertical triangular aluminum and glass towers, which diminish the building’s mass quadrant by quadrant up to a single spire, which helps the building resist high velocity winds. Other challenges that occurred during construction included moving materials up to a height that had never been worked at outside of the United States, and the need to develop new erection and glazing methods.
The architectural type of the skyscraper is that of structural expressionism and was designed by I.M. to be in a form that is reminiscent of growing bamboo shoots, which in Chinese culture symbolizes prosperity and livelihood. The design is a unique blend of Chinese and modern architectural design. Glass curtain walls cover the exterior of the building. The Bank of China Tower rises up out and provides breathtaking views of the Victoria Harbour.
There was some controversy over the Bank of China Tower’s design. It was the first significant building in Hong Kong that did not consult with a feng shit master on the building’s design. Some Feng Shui practitioners have criticized the design of the Bank of China Tower due to its sharp edges and numerous X shapes, which can connote a negative symbolism.
The Bank of China Tower is not only one of the most distinctive landmarks on Hong Kong’s skyline but has also made it into several forms of popular culture. It is included in the computer games Sim City 4 and Sim City 3000 and a digitally modified form of the building can be seen as the Starfleet’s Communication Research Center on the television show Stark Trek: Voyagers.