It is a rare moment when the words "architect" and "architecture" appear in the elusive list of trending Twitter topics, but yesterday's sighting followed a sad occasion: architect I.M. Pei, the revered master of modernist architecture, had died on Thursday at the proud age of 102.

Architecture critic and writer Paul Goldberger was the first to share the news—triggering a prompt outpouring of sympathy and memories from the architecture community and beyond.

Some sad news: I’ve just learned that I.M. Pei died last night, at 102. The end of an architectural era, truly. A sad moment, but a career—and a life—worthy of celebration.
— Paul Goldberger (@paulgoldberger) May 16, 2019

Michael Kimmelman, the current NYT architecture critic, shared his personal experience with Pei's architecture, writing "Like others, I deeply admire Pei's beautiful and thoughtful Islamic museum in Qatar, respect the sculptural power of the East Building in D.C. and the Pyramid in Paris, among obvious landmarks, but it's the memory of visiting friends in Kips Bay + Silver Towers as a child and feeling what was then an undefined thrill at their modernity (yes, Freed and others deserve credit too), and then feeling the same sense of discovery as an adult coming upon his sculpture wing in Des Moines. He could be such a poet."

"I.M. Pei graced cities around the world with a modernism that was, at its best, as elegant and bold as the man himself," wrote Chicago Tribune critic, Blair Kamin. "From Hong Kong to the Louvre to the National Mall, Pei's modernism combined technological elan w/ visual drama. This elder statesman will be greatly missed."

“Let us all be attentive to new ideas, to advancing means, to dawning needs, to impetuses of change so that we may achieve, beyond architectural originality, a harmony of spirit in the service of man.” — I.M. Pei, 1983

Mark Lamster, architecture critic of the Dallas Morning News, commented: "Although Pei left significant imprints on New York, Boston, and Paris, there is no city that is quite so defined by his vision as Dallas. His works here are diverse in style, scale, and purpose, but together they evince his sense of cool modern forms."

Lamster quoted Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings, saying "I.M. Pei helped make Dallas, reshaping and reinvigorating the city as we emerged from the darkness of the assassination of President Kennedy. He helped Dallas achieve cultural heights with the elegant Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Hall, one of the great symphony centers in America."

Ellis Woodman, Director of London's Architecture Foundation and The Telegraph critic, made a transatlantic connection of Pei's influence on British housing design: "RIP I.M. Pei: easy to dismiss him as a bombastic airhead but I recently saw some 1970 housing in Philadelphia which was so precise and economical: a language on a par with Neave Brown’s work of that period and perhaps more applicable to the present moment."

RIP I.M. Pei: easy to dismiss him as a bombastic airhead but I recently saw some 1970 housing in Philadelphia which was so precise and economical: a language on a par with Neave Brown’s work of that period and perhaps more applicable to the present moment. pic.twitter.com/KpTyvyNr9H
— Ellis Woodman (@elliswoodman) May 16, 2019

Major national architecture institutions on both sides of the Atlantic expressed their respect for Pei as well.

Robert Ivy, CEO of the American Institute of Architects, said "Like the iconic pyramid at the courtyard of the Louvre, I.M. Pei, FAIA, created lanterns that shone a light with the power of architecture. His body of work, at once rational and artful, inspired generations, including his fellow architects, who were touched and encouraged by the power of his design and a life lived with dignity and purpose."

"I.M. Pei’s prolific contribution to architecture spans the globe and two centuries," wrote RIBA President Ben Derbyshire in his tribute. "His life’s work is represented across continents, gifting a series of modernist masterpieces to cities from Hong Kong and Paris to Colorado and latterly Souzhou, his childhood home. It is a rarity for one architect to have such a vast portfolio of exceptional international work, but he will be remembered for much more than the robust, geometrical yet elegantly civic architecture. He sought out Bauhaus émigrés Walter Gropius, and Marcel Breuer, who taught him at Harvard, and practised a humane modernism that touched generations of architects and will continue to do so."

Even a head of state took to Twitter to express his gratitude for Pei's architectural contribution to his nation's built environment. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau wrote this: "Ieoh Ming Pei, a giant of architecture, has left us. His magnificent works, notably Place Ville Marie in Montreal, have marked Canadians & citizens around the world. His legacy will live on through the iconic buildings that have shaped so many communities."

Ieoh Ming Pei, a giant of architecture, has left us. His magnificent works, notably Place Ville Marie in Montreal, have marked Canadians & citizens around the world. His legacy will live on through the iconic buildings that have shaped so many communities.
— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) May 17, 2019

Several institutions with significant buildings designed by I.M. Pei, or his firm Pei Cobb Freed & Partners, remembered their collaboration as clients.

Kaywin Feldman, Director of the National Gallery of Art in D.C., tweeted: "We at the National Gallery of Art are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of I.M. Pei. His death is a great loss to the nation, to the National Gallery of Art, and to each of our visitors who has marveled at his timeless vision."

Remembering I.M. Pei at the Gallery today. pic.twitter.com/XuhR3aYt2b
— National Gallery of Art (@ngadc) May 17, 2019

The Los Angeles Convention Center remembered the architect as well: "Today, we honor the man who created beautiful architecture, from the famous Louvre pyramid to our distinguished towers that make the LACC recognized by millions. Thank you, I.M. Pei for your undeniable artistic vision and passion. Your expertise and originality will be missed."

Exhibit Columbus shared: "Today we remember I.M. Pei, whose contributions to architecture span continents and communities––including our own Bartholomew County Public Library. #RIPIMPei," along with this video of I.M. Pei's speech at the Cleo Rogers Memorial Library Dedication in 1972.

Hear/Here: I.M. Pei. Video via Exhibit Columbus on Vimeo.

Cornell University’s Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art, which Pei designed in 1973, wrote: "#IMPei said about his work, "The important objective, aside from fulfilling the function of use, is that it inspires people and makes people feel like doing more, or being more." We're touched by the memories and affection that his passing is sending our way. #Cornell #twithaca"

"His design for our treasured Eskenazi Museum of Art remains truly visionary and extraordinary, and it has contributed mightily to the museum’s reputation as one of the premier art museums in the world," said Indiana University President Michael McRobbie. "The exquisite building has been a source of beauty and inspiration to countless Indiana University students, faculty, staff and members of the community who are drawn to its angular austerity, open spaces, windows and glass-ceiling atrium. We are truly honored to be home to one of his architectural masterpieces."

Boston's Museum of Fine Arts posted: "Renowned architect I. M. Pei (1917–2019) was chosen to design an extension to the MFA in 1977. The Wing opened in 1981, and is now known as the Linde Family Wing for Contemporary Art. Pei’s signature long-span construction and glass roof offer visitors a 220-foot view of the sky."

Renowned architect I. M. Pei (1917–2019) was chosen to design an extension to the MFA in 1977. The Wing opened in 1981, and is now known as the Linde Family Wing for Contemporary Art. Pei’s signature long-span construction and glass roof offer visitors a 220-foot view of the sky. pic.twitter.com/vyskoSfdNO
— Museum of Fine Arts (@mfaboston) May 17, 2019

"I.M. Pei was one of the most important architects of the second half of the Twentieth Century," Michael Speaks, Dean of the School of Architecture at Syracuse University, told Archinect in an email. "Significantly, he was also a truly global architect, with commissions all over the world. Among the many remarkable buildings that he designed, there are two here in Syracuse: Newhouse Communications Center 1, on the campus of Syracuse University, completed in 1964, and the Everson Museum, in downtown Syracuse, completed in 1968. The Everson Museum just celebrated its fiftieth anniversary. Referring to the four cantilevered forms of varied sizes arrayed in the shape of a pinwheel, Progressive Architecture, in a 1962 editorial feature on Pei, proclaimed the building to be 'a piece of abstract sculpture placed within a civic plaza setting – the sort of sculpture to house sculpture, one might say – a work of art for other works of art.' Indeed, the Everson was Pei’s first museum commission and among his best works overall. And that is perhaps because it was so purely and definitively a work of art dedicated to the display and exhibition of works of art."

The Met in New York reminisced about a special moment from 1983: "We are sad to hear the passing of architect I.M. Pei, whose incomparable contributions to museums and culture worldwide will leave an indelible legacy. In 1983, he accepted the Pritzker Architecture Prize here at The Met, saying: “Let us all be attentive to new ideas, to advancing means, to dawning needs, to impetuses of change so that we may achieve, beyond architectural originality, a harmony of spirit in the service of man.” – I.M. Pei, 1983"

Words to live, and practice, by.