Tao Ho

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Tao Ho ( Chinese  何 弢 , Pinyin Hé Tāo , Jyutping Ho 4 Tou 1 ; * July 17, 1936 in Shanghai ; † March 29, 2019 in Wan Chai ) was an architect and designer from Hong Kong . He was known for designing the Hong Kong flag and the Emblem of the Special Administrative Region .

education

Ho was born in Shanghai as the middle child of Ping Yin Ho and Chin Hwa and had an older brother and a younger sister. In 1937 or 1941 the family moved to Hong Kong, where Ho attended the Pui Ching Middle School in Kowloon until 1956 . He then went to the USA to study art history with minor subjects musicology and theology at Williams College in Williamstown (Massachusetts) . He graduated with a bachelor's degree in 1960 . Until 1964, Ho studied architecture at the Harvard Graduate School of Design (degree: MArch ). During this time he got to know Walter Gropius , Josep Lluís Sert and Sigfried Giedion , among others .

plant

After completing his master's degree, Ho returned to Hong Kong and taught architecture and design at the Chinese University . In 1968 he opened his office TaoHo Design Architects , one of whose first planned buildings was the Hong Kong Arts Center , which opened in 1977 and is inspired by the Bauhaus . In the following years he created, among other things, the Hong Kong pavilion for Expo 86 , a new panda house in Ocean Park and the tallest skyscraper in China when it was completed in 1996, the King Tower in Shanghai .

Hong Kong flag since 1997

From 1987 to 1988 there was a competition to determine the appearance of the Hong Kong flag for the period after Hong Kong was returned to China in 1997. There were more than 4,000 entries, all of which were rejected. Ho - originally part of the eleven-member jury - was then asked, together with two other jury members, to submit a draft himself. Its design prevailed and was approved by the National People's Congress in 1990 . The flag was first hoisted on the day of delivery, July 1, 1997. It goes back to the Bauhinia species Bauhinia × blakeana , which originally only occurs in Hong Kong and is a symbol of the city.

Tao Ho also attached importance to the protection of cultural monuments and historical buildings, such as the Western Market in Sheung Wan , which he restored accordingly.

Ho has also served on the boards of the Hong Kong Museum of Art , Hong Kong Regional Council and the Hong Kong Arts Center. From 1997 to 1998, Ho was President of the Hong Kong Institute of Architects.

Ho was married twice and had four children. He died on March 29, 2019 at a pneumonia in Ruttonjee Hospital in Wan Chai , Hong Kong Iceland .

Awards (selection)

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e Pioneering architect Tao Ho, known for designing Hong Kong Bauhinia flag and buildings such as Arts Center, dies at age 82.South China Morning Post , March 30, 2019, accessed November 16, 2019 .
  2. ↑ a b Obituary. TaoHoFoundation, April 2, 2019, accessed November 16, 2019 .
  3. ^ Tao Ho, Class of 1960 P1985. Williams College , accessed November 16, 2019 .
  4. ↑ Past Presidents of HKIA. The Hong Kong Institute of Architects, accessed November 17, 2019 .
personal data
SURNAME Ho, Tao
ALTERNATIVE NAMES 何 弢 (Chinese)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Chinese architect and designer
DATE OF BIRTH July 17, 1936
PLACE OF BIRTH Shanghai
DATE OF DEATH 29th March 2019
Place of death Wan Chai