I.M. Pei has been awarded the 2014 UIA Gold Medal, being selected from sixty-two nominees in twenty-two countries.
The gold medal prize recognizes a living architect for his or her achievements as well as contributions to society and is one of the highest honours awarded to an architect by his or her peers. Pei is the eleventh architect to be awarded the prize since its inception in 1984. The award is bestowed at each triennial congress. Pass medalists include Alvaro Siza (2011), Tadao Ando (2005) and Renzo Piano (2002). Born in China and educated at Harvard, Pei has contributed groundbreaking architecture around the world with a portfolio that includes Hong Kong’s Bank of China tower, Cleveland’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum and most notably, a glass pyramid for Paris’s Louvre Museum. His previous accolades include the American Institute of Architects (AIA) Gold Medal (1979), Pritzker Prize Laureate (1983) and Lifetime Achievement Award from Cooper-Hewett, National Design Museum 2003. The 2014 UIA congress will be held from 3–7 August in Durban, South Africa.