Showing 15 results

Archival description
Chongqing Villas
CA CAC 58-1-xx · Subseries · 2012-2018
Part of Moshe Safdie

Located on a broad hillside site adjacent to Chongqing’s well-known Eling Park, the design for the Eling Residences grows out of and echoes the dramatic natural topography of the site.

The buildings are organized with terracing villa units climbing the rock slopes and stepping up to the crest of the hill where, along the ridge line, two dome-shaped structures overlook the city. The location and organization of the low-rise terraced buildings endows each of the 126 apartments with natural daylight and affords uninterrupted views of the Yuzhong Peninsula and the Yangtze River. Interwoven with the buildings is a lush landscape comprised of cascading gardens, terraces, overlooks, stairs, and promenades for the residents to enjoy.

At the western edge of the site, a prominent 4-story clubhouse stands as a beacon for the project, signifying the entrance to both Eling Park and the development.

The terraces of the hilltop units provide uninterrupted views to the Yangtze River and city beyond. Each terrace serves as an extension of the apartment, maximizing residents’ access to light and air. Planters are integrated along the length of the terraces, and climbing plants will grow up the trellises to provide additional shading.

Safdie Architects
CA CAC 58-1-xx · Subseries · 2004
Part of Moshe Safdie

Surrounded by relatively tall commercial buildings, the Connecticut Center must assert itself. Its image evokes the sciences; its geometries are reminiscent of great astronomical instruments, challenging our curiosity. Two nacelles, shaped as segments of two great toroids, are perched side by side atop a podium. The structure of the nacelles is made of laminated wood lattice - a diagrid - that rotates about their surface in an ordered and repetitive geometry. Uniting the nacelles is a great roof platform in the shape of the surface of a partial sphere - an inverted dome. The geometries of each part intersect to create a cohesive and ordered whole. The Connecticut Center is organized into six levels, the first of which is the entry at the street. The second level is a podium, which features three floors of parking as well as offices and the museum's back-of-the-house areas. The deck of the podium extends Hartford's series of piazza, which also connect to the river abutting the site - these are the city's upper platform. The third and fourth levels of the Center, within the nacelles, are an exhibition and theatre spaces; the fifth level, also within the nacelles, is the upper mezzanine; the top level is the sky garden.

Safdie Architects
CA CAC 58-1-98 · Subseries · 1962
Part of Moshe Safdie

The city of Giza was a theoretical study for a high-density city, amidst the existing ancient pyramids, which could accommodate the resettlement of 250,000 Palestinian refugees. Giza illustrated a number of concepts which Moshe Safdie had been exploring prior to Habitat '67 such as workable high-density environments, three-dimensional reorganization of urban land uses, the organization of individual dwellings as spatial groupings, the hierarchical organization of transportation networks, and the utilization of mass-production construction techniques.

Safdie Architects
CA CAC 58-1-63400 · Subseries · 2010
Part of Moshe Safdie

The Dream Island Integrated Resort is located on Obudai Island on the Danube River in Budapest, Hungary. The project, totaling over 300,000 square meters, includes an entertainment district, a state-of-the-art casino and convention center, and hotels with over 3,000 rooms - all connected by an active marina and canal system. The project integrates new buildings with a network of existing historic buildings and the lush, natural landscape of Obudai Island.

The Island has two distinct halves, the east and the west, which are defined by the Great Bay and the marina. Visitors arrive at the north end of the Island and are introduced to the Resort by a Grand Fountain. From this location they can choose to circulate into either of the two halves of the Island. To the east is the hotel and casino complex and to the west lies the historic and entertainment district. The hotel complex consists of low, discrete buildings that are small in scale and organized along a man-made canal that is oriented north to south.

The hotel roofs accommodate amenities such as swimming pools, jogging paths and gardens. Running parallel to the canal, and below the level of the hotels, is the cardo - a main street of pedestrian activity with views to the Great Bay. Along the cardo guests have direct access to the marina level containing the casino, convention center, retail, restaurants, and waterfront amenities. To the west of the Great Bay a new museum, theater, and visitor's center are woven into the Roman archaeological site of Hadrian's Governors Palace.

Buildings in the historic and entertainment district, which once housed shipbuilding operations, are carefully preserved and converted to a mixed-use retail and entertainment complex. A pedestrian path, enclosed by a transparent glass ceiling, connects the 1600-seat performing arts theater, restaurants, outdoor caf?s, gardens, and a Film-Museum to the south. At the southernmost tip of the island a 112 meter tall elliptical wheel allows visitors to ascend and view the project, as well as survey the Danube River with the mainland of Buda to the west and Pest to the east.

Safdie Architects
CA CAC 58-1-557 · Subseries · 1980 - 2015
Part of Moshe Safdie

The Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives building serves as the national headquarters for a government agency with the highest security requirements. Located at the intersection of New York and Florida avenues, this building has been a catalyst for urban renewal and rejuvenation in the surrounding district. The program called for general office space, extensive training facilities, an auditorium, and auxiliary services.

Notwithstanding security setback requirements, the complex engages and animates the surrounding street edges. The entrance is positioned across from the new Metro station on the southeast corner; retail facilities line 2nd Street (to the east); and a trellised garden wall defines N Street (to the south). In addition a three-story planted, arcaded crescent contains the site to the north and west, enclosing a 48,500-square-foot internal garden and inconspicuously serving as a security barrier.

Auxiliary elements such as loading docks and an inspection booth are integrated into the overall fabric of buildings and garden walls. The provision of a technical subfloor for the distribution of data and mechanical services allows for maximum flexibility. The office space consists of relatively narrow floor plates surrounding a large atrium, thus affording daylight for all workspaces.

Safdie Architects
Comverse Systems Campus
CA CAC 58-1-556 · Subseries · 2000
Part of Moshe Safdie

The proposed design for the headquarters of Converse Network Systems at Ra'anana, on the outskirts of Tel Aviv, included offices and manufacturing facilities for 6,000 employees along with 4,000 underground parking spaces. The complex was to consist of eight office pavilions flanking a glazed community "street". The office buildings -- four and five stories high -- were to be set atop a floor devoted to manufacturing and services, with four underground parking levels below it. The linear office structures were to be set 32 meters apart, containing a series of thematic gardens with gardens, water features and recreational spaces. The largest of the gardens was to contain dining terraces and a health club opening to an outdoor swimming pool.

Safdie Architects
Simpang New Town
CA CAC 58-1-514 · Subseries · between 1992 and 1994
Part of Moshe Safdie

In this proposed new town of 125,000, commissioned by the Housing and Development Board of the Republic of Singapore, the repetitive housing typology model that maximizes density is re-examined. To break down the scale and maintain target densities, several housing typologies combine to create a hierarchy of massing that maximizes views and daylight exposures.

These planning precepts incorporate a combination of high- and medium-density walk-ups with high-rise buildings, including terraced housing and clusters, to form urban windows that prevent the formation of solid walls along waterfront and park edges.

Three principal main streets and a central linear park unite and orient the town. Streets and pedestrian paths run perpendicular to the park, where most social and educational services are located, bringing all dwellings into close walking and driving proximity to greenery, services, the town center, and the sea front. To capture views and take advantage of the city's natural edges, high-rise towers line the central park, the southern edge of town, and the waterfront. These design principles create a new and vibrant urbanism, celebrating the connection to the natural world with an organized set of networks and systems that serve diverse community activities and needs. Completed in 1994.

Safdie Architects
Ballet Opera House
CA CAC 58-1-423 · Subseries · between 1987 and 1990
Part of Moshe Safdie

The Ballet Opera House was planned as the home and performance center for the National Ballet of Canada and the Canadian Opera Company, located in downtown Toronto between Bay and Yonge Streets. When a new provincial government was elected, however, the project was indefinitely shelved pending resolution of funding issues. Safdie's design features a public passage, referred to as "Gallery of the Artists," traversing the site at street level and accommodating specialty retail elements. The heart of the project was to be a 2,000 seat auditorium consisting of a main stage and three support stages, while the exterior of the building was to be composed of a series of tower-like elements that integrated it with the surrounding streets of Toronto.

Safdie Architects