The professional archive of renowned Israeli-Canadian architect Moshe Safdie will now be housed at his alma mater McGill University, the school announced today.
The Habitat 67 designer will also donate his restored private apartment in the famed modular housing complex, along with the undergraduate thesis titled “A Case for City Living” that led to its inception as part of the Expo 67 exhibition in Montreal 55 years ago.
The apartment (which was not previously managed by the university) and thesis are just two of the more than 100,000 total pieces included in the donation. McGill says the archive “represents one of the most extensive and thorough individual collections of architectural documentation in Canada” and that it expects the gift to provide “an abundance of opportunity for exploration” to the university and design-minded community writ large.
Special announcement ceremony of Moshe Safdie's archive donation at McGill University. Video via McGill University on YouTube.
At the announcement, the architect said: “I have always valued the great education I received at McGill that has guided me through my professional life. Moreover, Canada has embraced and supported me, making possible the realization of several seminal projects. It is therefore fitting that McGill, Quebec, and Canada will be the home of my life’s work.”
Students will have the opportunity to explore the inspiration taken from his childhood spent in a Kibbutz, in addition to the myriad other philosophical underpinnings of Safdie's award-winning designs. A total of 5,000 square feet will be set aside in the university's John Bland Canadian Architecture Collection to house the donation, which is the largest in school history. Many sketches, models, and other items related to Safdie's realized works, including the recently-completed Albert Einstein Education and Research Center in São Paulo, will feature prominently in the collection as well.
“[The] gift of his extensive archive positions the McGill Library as a serious player among the world’s great architecture collections,” McGill's Dean of Libraries, C. Colleen Cook, said finally. “This gift will deepen the Library’s collaboration with the University’s teaching and research programs, particularly at the Peter Guo-hua Fu School of Architecture. Student engagement with primary material will inspire fresh examination, perspectives, and discussion relevant to course themes.”
5 Comments
With a great mustache comes great responsibilities.
Glad this is getting the historical treatment it deserves.
That used to be a Marxist mustache.
Came here to celebrate the good news and also to comment on both the awesome work and the awesome mustache but Non beat me to it. Yay Canada!
I've seen the 'stash in person. It's even more glorious.
Did he let you pet it?
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