Behind the main harbor of the island, several tall skyscrapers define the landscape. The dawn of the
postmodern style brought the reformation of the tower block building making it a complex architectural
vision instead of a simple engineering task. In these years, the struggle in Hong Kong between the
Anglo-Saxon and Chinese identities became stronger and at the same time, the city enjoyed immense
wealth and architects’ assignments became a key factor for both the political and business points of
view.
It was in this race that Hong Kong was enriched by the two iconic bank buildings that are now taught at
all technical universities. The city was especially lucky because the attention to global politics economic
prosperity, architectural style and technical innovations all came together at the same time. The Hong
Kong Shanghai Banking Corporation or HSBC was established almost 150 years ago at the beginning of
the colonist era. In 1980, they decided to completely renew their headquarters. One of the most
prestigious British architects, the designer of the extension to the Royal Academy In London, Norman
Foster was commissioned to create a whole new building at the given location.
The new bank center was built in less than four years and became the most expensive bank building of
the world. The building resembles the Centre Pompidou in Paris designed by Piano Rogers. Forster
didn’t hide the aluminum covered steel structure. Instead, he deliberately emphasized it. The façade
reflects the inner management function based layout of the tower building in a spectacular way giving
the building overlooking the bay a unique rhythm. All this has made the building an integral part of the
city. The external highlighting of the structure, the dull aluminum cover, the relatively humble height of
the building conveyed a message. This workplace is an engineering marvel and since there aren’t any
structural elements in the inner areas, it also has a lot of natural light. Thus it propagates the ambitious
diligent working morale of Hong Kong.
The HSBC building had barely been finished when competition already surfaced. Its rival became none
other than the People’s Republic of China that was preparing to take over the control of the city. In
1990, only five years after the erection of the Foster building, the amazing building of the Bank of China
was handed over, only a few blocks away. This building is almost twice as high as the HSBC tower and
has only been surpassed in height by the immigration tower in the city. The glass prisms of the
American architect are excellent for sightseeing and we could take the elevator to the observation
terrace of the 70 storey building. In a place with so many tower blocks, there are lots of places to take
in the bird’s eye view. A different sight can be seen from the top of the HSBC and the IFC. Baker
Plantation, Lugarn and Harledge roads all offer excellent views but perhaps the most beautiful
panorama can been from the observation deck of the Peak Tower.