Moshe Safdie

Habitat 67 is a modular concrete housing project in Montreal built for Expo 67. It used 354 prefabricated concrete modules arranged into 158 residences, each intended to combine apartment density with private outdoor space.

Moshe Safdie was born in Haifa in 1938 and moved to Canada as a teenager. His career is often described as Israeli Canadian because his major early breakthrough, Habitat 67, was built in Montreal.

Safdie Architects designed Marina Bay Sands in Singapore, which opened in 2010, and Jewel Changi Airport, which opened in 2019. Those projects made his work visible far beyond architecture circles because both became major tourist landmarks.

It tried to solve a real urban problem: how to give apartment dwellers light, air, gardens, and individuality without low-density suburbia. More than 50 years after Expo 67, architects still cite it when discussing modular housing and high-density living.