"The Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank by Norman Foster is probably the best known, and most widely publicized building of the decade, largely because it was claimed to have cost more money than any other building to erect. Notwithstanding that kind of publicity and the building's subsequent overshadowing by far inferior competitors, it remains a unique architectural achievement and a small wonder of the modern age."

— Dennis Sharp. Twentieth Century Architecture: a Visual History. p388.

The Creator's Words

"...What are the short-comings of the high-rise office, which bristles in every business district from Dallas to Tokyo? First a complete absence of variety, inside and out; second, poor technical performance; and third, an almost complete indifference to the public, or semi-public domain at street level..."

— from Foster and Partners