I.M Pei's work has influenced many. However, there are several individuals and places that have influenced Pei into becoming one of the most recognized architects in the profession. Growing up in Hong Kong and Shanghai, Pei drew much inspiration from his childhood surroundings, but do you know what else inspired the late architectural legend? 

Every great architect is inspired by someone or something which propels them into producing their most significant work. Below is a list of people and places that have influenced I.M. Pei and his work.

Shizilin Garden in Suzhou
As a child, Pei would visit the gardens of Suzhou with his family during the summer. Indeed a place filled with beauty and history the Shizilin Garden was especially influential to Pei as a boy. Built by a Buddhist monk in the 14th century, the late architect described the garden as "an ideal playground." What stuck with Pei the most was the garden's blend of nature and human-made structures.  

Lien Kwun, I.M. Pei's Mother 
Growing up, Pei was very close to his mother. A devout Buddhist she would spend time taking young Pei on meditation retreats. His mother was also a master flutist who was a big supporter of the arts. When designing the new Mesa Laboratory for the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Colorado Pei spent much of his conceptualizing phase recalling the time spent with his mother on their Buddhist retreats. "I recalled the places I had seen with my mother when I was a little boy—the Buddhist mountaintop retreats. There in the Colorado mountains, I tried to listen to the silence again—just as my mother had taught me. The investigation of the place became a kind of religious experience for me."

Hollywood Movies and Bing Crosby
As a young child growing up in Shanghai, Pei attended Saint Johns Middle School. Run by strict Protestant missionaries, the students were only allowed leisure time one half-day each month. During these half-days, Pei enjoyed watching old Hollywood movies starring Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton. When Pei got older and decided to pursue an architectural education outside of China, he chose to go to America not only for its academic institutions but because of Hollywood's portrayal of college life in America. According to Pei, during an interview, he was drawn to Bing Crosby and his portrayal of college life. "College life in the U.S. seemed to me to be mostly fun and games [...] Since I was too young to be serious, I wanted to be part of it."

Le Corbusier and Modern Architecture
As a student at MIT, Pei struggled with the Beaux-Arts style the school's faculty focused on. However, during his time spent in the library, Pei discovered books written by Le Corbusier. Amazed by this new International style, Pei was heavily impacted by Corbusier's use of form and materials. After the Swiss-French architect visited MIT in 1935, young Pei was immediately taken by Corbusier's work and presence. During an interview, Pei shared, "The two days with Le Corbusier, or 'Corbu' as we used to call him, were probably the most important days in my architectural education."

Denver, Colorado
During the early parts of his career, Pei worked for the firm Webb and Knapp in New York. As he received more projects, his work soon caught the attention of many in the profession. After creating a team of his own in order to keep up with the demand for project opportunities, Pei and his team worked on several projects in Denver, Colorado. Responsible for several commercial buildings such as the Mile High Center and Denver's Courthouse Square Pei soon realized architectures more significant role in urban geography. The late architect once shared with filmmaker Gero von Boehm, "I learned the process of development, and about the city as a living organism." These project lessons profoundly influenced much of his later projects across the globe.

"Architecture is the very mirror of life. You only have to cast your eyes on buildings to feel the presence of the past, the spirit of a place; they are the reflection of society."