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The Bank of China Tower has been a staple of Hong Kong's skyline for so long that it's almost impossible to imagine what the cityscape looked like without it. Completed in 1990 and designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect I.M. Pei, the 315-metre-tall building was the first skyscraper outside of the United States to break the 305-metre mark. It was the tallest building in Hong Kong and Asia until 1992 — when Central Plaza was completed — and although it's since been surpassed by dozens of others, its immeasurable impact on the development of skyscrapers continues to be felt. In many ways, the Bank of China Tower paved the way for the supertall and megatall skyscrapers of today.
Though it was originally set for completion on the auspicious date of August 8 1988, delays meant that the project wouldn't break ground until March 1985, two years after initially intended. After topping out in 1989, the building was officially completed on June 15, 1990. Said to resemble growing bamboo shoots, the 72-storey structure was the first highrise to utilize a composite space frame structural system.
The 1988 image above shows the tower's structural expressionist aesthetic taking shape, its peaked roof just coming together as glazing is installed on the lower levels. Taken from Victoria Peak, the panoramic vantage point also shows the 1985-built HSBC Building by Foster + Partners, which possesses a similar architectural style. Then brand new, the twin-tower Lippo Centre is visible just to the right of the Bank of China Tower.
In the almost 30 years since, Hong Kong's explosive vertical growth has translated to one of the densest central business districts in the world. As a result, I.M. Pei's skyscraping masterpiece has been partially obscured by the glass and steel complex to the southwest, Three Garden Road. A number of other landmarks have joined the skyline as well, namely the 283-metre, Cesar Pelli-designed Cheung Kong Center to the west and Skidmore, Owings and Merrill's bird-like Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre on the waterfront.
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