A sketch of Habitat 67 by Moshe Safdie
Spring of 1967, Montreal was gearing up to host the World's Fair or Expo 67. The exhibition invited a global audience to experience the culture, art, architecture, and scientific innovations from 62 different nations. It's widely considered as the most successful World's Fair of the 20th century. A city of under 3 million brought in over 50 million visitors to walk its streets in the summer of 1967.
Experimental apartment building Habitat 67 was one of the main attractions unveiled at Expo 67. Designed by Israeli-Canadian architect, Moshe Safdie, Habitat 67 was a revolutionary piece of Brutalist architecture and remains one of Canada's most well known buildings. Connecting Lego-like concrete structures in unique ways, Moshe sought to give each apartment unit a house-like feel. Rather than being confined to the standard vertical high-rise, Habitat sprawled, allowing each unit to have a connectedness to both each other and nature, fostering the idea of community.
At the time Moshe Safdie was a student at Montreal's McGill University: Habitat 67 was his master's thesis project. To us that's the most impressive part. Canada took a chance with Safdie on something that was very forward for its time. Characterized by sharp lines, rigid corners, and an overall ‘blocky’ appearance, Habitat is one of most interesting buildings in Canada and a global Brutalist icon.
For Raised by Wolves, the Montreal landmark served as the inspiration for this season's Brutalist typeface.