In Hong Kong, I loved just up the hill from the Hong Kong Zoological Gardens and Botanical gardens. Both just a 5-10 minute walk from my apartment building. Living in one of the most populated and bustling cities on earth, I was amazed at how many opportunities there were to connect with and be in natural environments. I walked through and enjoyed these gardens often, as did many locals and expats. I had my watercolor kit with me one day and decided to do a sketch of the Bank of China building. One, because it was designed by architect I.M. Pei who also did the glass pyramid at the Louvre in Paris and I like his work. Two, because it is such an iconic building in the city.
The Bank of China Building designed by I.M. Pei, image via wikipedia
There was some controversy surrounding this building, at the time it was built. It is the only major building in the city to have bypassed the normal practice in Hong Kong of consulting with feng shui masters on it’s design prior to construction. According to feng shui principles it’s triangles, sharp angular features, and many “x” shapes have negative symbolism.
The HSBC building designed by Norman Foster, image via Wikimedia Commons
When another iconic building in the Hong Kong landscape was built, the HSBC bank building, designed by famed British architect Norman Foster, metal rods were installed on the top pointing directly at the Bank of China building to protect it, by deflecting the negative energy right back to Bank of China. Take that Bank of China! Hmmm, that sounds like a good idea. I’d like to have something like that to deflect negative energy.