Moshe Safdie

 ( 1938 Births ) 

In September 1955, Safdie registered for the six-year architectural degree program at the McGill University Faculty of Engineering. In his fifth year, Safdie was named University Scholar. The following summer, he was awarded the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) scholarship. He traveled across North America to observe housing developments in the continent's major cities. In his final year, Safdie developed his thesis, entitled "A Case for City Living", and described as "A Three-Dimensional Modular Building System". He received his degree in 1961. Two years later, while apprenticing with architect Louis Kahn, Safdie's thesis advisor Sandy van Ginkel invited Safdie to submit his modular project for the World Exposition of 1967. In preparation for the exposition his thesis was developed into a complete master plan, eventually being constructed in Montreal. Named after the event that turned an idea into reality, the building is known as Habitat 67.

Later, Safdie received commissions for public buildings in Canada: the National Gallery of Canada, the Quebec Museum of Civilization, and Vancouver Library Square. Other notable cultural works include the Virasat-e-Khalsa, the national museum of the Sikhs people in Punjab, India; the United States Institute of Peace Headquarters on the Mall in Washington, DC; the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts in Kansas City, Missouri; and the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Arkansas.

Safdie has worked on projects in emerging markets, and brought projects to completion in shorter periods, at larger scales. including: Marina Bay Sands, a mixed-use resort integrated with Singapore's iconic Skypark; Jewel Changi Airport, a new community-centric airport typology combining marketplace and garden; and Raffles City Chongqing, a mixed-use development featuring over one million square meters of housing, office, retail, transportation, and hotel programs. To connect four towers in Chongqing, he designed a sky bridge that has been referred to as the world's longest "Horizontal Skyscraper". Safdie and his team have used sky bridges and multi-level connectivity in other projects to make skyscrapers more accessible.

Safdie formed a research program within his office to pursue the advanced investigation of design topics. The practice-oriented fellowship explores speculative ideas outside normal business practice constraints. Fellows work independently with Safdie and firm principals to formulate specific proposals and research plans. The salaried position is in-residence, with full access to project teams and outside consultants. Past fellowships include Habitat of the Future, Mobility on Demand, and Tall Buildings in the city.

In December 2023, Safdie Architects announced it was suspending its involvement in controversial hotel development in Jerusalem's Armenian quarter, citing "controversy surrounding the land lease agreement".Safdie Architects respond to participation in the Armenian Quarter land lease deal [1] This followed an attack by some 30 armed masked individuals on Armenian community members holding a vigil at the site. The Armenian Patriarchate in Jerusalem accused Danny Rothman, Safdie Architects' client for the project, of organizing the attack.Jerusalem's Armenian community attacked by a mob amid land dispute, Civilnet report [2]

In 1981, Safdie married Michal Ronnen, a Jerusalem-born photographer and daughter of artist Vera Ronnen. Safdie and Ronnen have two daughters, Carmelle and Yasmin. Carmelle is an artist, and Yasmin is a social worker.

• 2020: Genius Award, Liberty Science Center`
• 2020: Lynn S. Beedle Lifetime Achievement Award, Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH)
• 2019: Honorary Doctorate, Technion – Israel Institute of Technology
• 2019: Wolf Prize in Architecture, International Wolf Foundation
• 2018: Lifetime Achievement Award, Design Futures Council
• 2018: Shortlisted for the European Cultural Centre Architecture Award
• 2017: Honorary Doctorate, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev
• 2015: Gold Medal, American Institute of Architects
• 2012: Medaille du Merite, Ordre des architectes du Québec
• 2005: Companion Order of Canada, Governor General-in-Council of Canada
• 2003: Lifetime Achievement Award, YIVO Institute for Jewish Research
• 2002: Honorary Fellow, Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland
• 2001: Honorary Doctorate, Hebrew College
• 1997: Jewish Cultural Achievement Award in the Visual Arts, National Foundation for Jewish Culture
• 1996: Honorary Doctorate in Engineering, Technical University of Nova Scotia
• 1996: Academy Member, American Academy of Arts and Sciences
• 1995: Gold Medal, Royal Architectural Institute of Canada
• 1995: College of Fellows, American Institute of Architects
• 1993: Richard Neutra Award for Professional Excellence, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
• 1989: Honorary Doctorate in Fine Arts, University of Victoria
• 1988: Honorary Doctorate in Sciences, Laval University
• 1987: Mt. Scopus Award for Humanitarianism, Hebrew University of Jerusalem
• 1986: The Order of Canada, Governor General-in-Council of Canada
• 1982: Honorary Doctor of Law, McGill University
• 1982: Tau Sigma Delta Gold Medal for Distinction in Design, Tau Sigma Delta Grand Chapter
• 1961: Lieutenant Governor's gold medal for Exceptional Merit, Lieutenant Governor of Québec

• 2017: Habitat 67 vers l’avenir: The Shape of Things to Come, Université du Québec à Montréal
• 2010–2014: Global Citizen: The Architecture of Moshe Safdie, National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada / Skirball Cultural Center, Los Angeles, California / Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, Arkansas, U.S.
• 2012–2013: Moshe Safdie: The Path to Crystal Bridges, Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, Arkansas, U.S.
• 2004: An Architect's Vision: Moshe Safdie’s Jepson Center for the Arts, Telfair Museum of Art, Savannah, Georgia, U.S.
• 2003–2004: Building a New Museum, Peabody Essex Museum, Salem, Massachusetts, U.S.
• 1998: Moshe Safdie, Museum Architecture 1971–1998, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
• 1989: Moshe Safdie, Projects: 1979–1989, Harvard University Graduate School of Design, Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S.
• 1985: The National Gallery of Canada, Harvard University Graduate School of Design, Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S. / National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
• 1982: Context, Traveling exhibit sponsored by New York Institute for the Humanities
• 1973–1974: For Everyone A Garden, Baltimore Museum of Art, Baltimore, Maryland, U.S. / National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada / San Francisco MoMA, San Francisco, California, U.S.

• 2020: "Moshe Safdie: Another Dimension of Architecture", I-Talk Productions
• 2018: "Time Space Existence", Plane-Site
• 2004: "Moshe Safdie: The Power of Architecture", Donald Winkler
• 2003: "My Architect: A Son’s Journey", Nathaniel Kahn
• 1997: "The Sound of the Carceri with Yo-Yo Ma", Francois Girard
• 1973: "The Innocent Door" / "Coldspring New Town", National Film Board of Canada