CALVIN TSAO:

I would say this project was life-changing for me…or life affirming.

PRESENTER:

That's Calvin Tsao. In 1979, he was a young associate at renowned Chinese-American architect I. M. Pei’s practice. Based in the U.S., Pei had just won the commission to design, build, and furnish the Fragrant Hill Hotel in Beijing, of which this gorgeous lamp was a tiny part.

On the ground in Beijing, Calvin was responsible for realising Pei’s vision.

CALVIN TSAO:

For I. M., he wants to use this opportunity to explore something that's really deeply, resonant and important to him, which is take all that he's learned and apply it back to his native country with a unique mission, which is to resuscitate the tradition of Chinese way of thinking about place, and belonging, and the relationship between nature and the built environment.

PRESENTER:

This lamp is a prime example of how Calvin—in partnership with interior designer John Morford—managed to manifest Pei’s vision in every aspect of the hotel. It was designed to enhance the sensuality of the hotel’s grand atrium, a large but intimate lounge area.

CALVIN TSAO:

And we decided that we also need to bring light to the objects in the space; maybe light still going down and bouncing back up. And that's the best light for your face rather than direct light straight onto your face. And when it's going down. Of course, then the body of the lamp also has to be very beautiful. So, we said, well, let's keep the lamp very simple. Just a cylinder.

PRESENTER:

With the design finalised, Calvin then collaborated closely with local craftspeople, to help realise its authentic cracked ice pattern using the traditional metalworking technique of cloisonné. As Calvin said earlier, this collaborative way of creating pieces, and the sensitivity to place and space, would fundamentally change the way he approached his work going forward.

CALVIN TSAO:

As far as I'm concerned, I think being an architect we serve, we don't just lead, we guide. We have a responsibility to bring the world together and we have to start from there. And this project working with people that seem to be totally on another page from my world, and somehow in the process of two years became a family, dedicated to make this as fantastic as possible. I get very emotional thinking about it even today, the brotherhood that we belong, that we need to continue to remember, and that we are not alone. And that is a foundation of my practice and it’s thanks to my experience on this project.

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