Moshe Safdie
Moshe Safdie
Moshe Safdie, CC, FAIAis an Israeli/Canadian/American architect, urban designer, educator, theorist, and author. He is most identified with Habitat 67, which paved the way for his international career...
NationalityIsraeli
ProfessionArchitect
Date of Birth14 July 1938
CountryIsrael
strong thinking hands
I think the general public's response to my projects is very strong. You can be an intellectual and say that popularity detracts from architectural quality. On the other hand, you can see in the public's identification something very positive.
thinking essence cities
I think you need to, as an architect, understand the essence of a place and create a building that feels like it resonates with the culture of a place. So my buildings in India or in Kansas City or in Arkansas or in Singapore, they come out different because the places are so different.
cutting thinking umbilical-cord
The greatest satisfaction, I think, is when a building opens and the public possesses it and you cut the umbilical cord and you see it taking on its own life. There’s no greater satisfaction.
attempt diplomat expansive inherited life lower mediator mission narrative portion represents site structure symbolic weave
We inherited a site with a large, bunker-like structure and made every attempt to weave it into the narrative of the project. The lower portion of the building, with its militaristic past, represents the first portion of Rabin's life as a warrior. The upper portion of the building, with its mission of education, its expansive views, and symbolic dove's wings, represents the diplomat and mediator that he became.
bringing combining daylight dollars greatly improve millions project save street
Bringing it to street level, combining it with a park, you bring daylight into it. It's airy. So we save tens of millions of dollars and greatly improve the project experience.
I have a passion for libraries. They are potentially real community centers.
except gulf hard israeli negatively persian projects
Except for the projects in Israel, my being Israeli has contributed negatively to my global activity. It is hard for me, for example, to get projects in the Persian Gulf emirates.
anywhere architects opportunity produce seized star
I don't think I have a signature style that announces, 'This is a Safdie.' But I think star architects have seized an opportunity to go anywhere in the world to produce meaningless buildings.
country environment
I grew up in a country where the environment was very social justice-oriented.
A house is not a machine! It's something else for living - but not a machine.
affect express society stay
A painter, a sculptor, a writer, they can express freely. They don't affect society as a whole. We build buildings that have a purpose, that stay there for hundreds of years or decades.
countries history
Countries and places have a history, a story, and a culture.
cities contribute enormous oppressive vast
We live in a complicated, oppressive world with enormous cities and vast populations, and I try to contribute by making it more light and open and calm.
article identity israeli written
My identity is always at the forefront, and I also think that every article that is written about me refers to me as an Israeli architect.