Library Buildings around the World

Heikkinen-Komonen, Helsinki – Finland
Mikko Heikkinen, Markku Komonen
http://www.heikkinen-komonen.fi
Vuotalo Cultural Center, Helsinki – Finland 1997 – 2000
6.095 m²
Vuotalo Cultural Centre is a part of a network of suburban cultural centres around Helsinki. The building houses a library and
facilities for music and other arts as well as a stage for theatre and dance performances. Vuosaari has become one of the new growth
extensions of Helsinki, with already almost 40,000 inhabitants; the population is represented by all social groups, and a large part of
the inhabitants have come from elsewhere in Finland and there is also a significant number of foreign immigrants. The basic design
solution of the Centre resembles a hinge, where multi-level functional and traffic connections are integrated. The building opens out
along its entire length towards a pedestrian route while turning its back against a busy bus traffic artery. All the activities of the
building are visible at a glance behind the 2-storey glazed main facade. The rear side, on the other hand, is covered with stainless
steel chain-link conveyor belt normally used in the processing industry, which, depending on lighting and the angle of view, appears
to cover the facade behind it in a silvery armour or scales of a salmon – or turns it completely transparent. In the building mass,
which is deep due to its half-circle plan shape, two glass-covered 'canyons' have been sliced. It is via these that natural light enters
into the centre of the building, and together with the entrance gallery, they create spatial variation in the otherwise even height
landscape, as well as bringing together the library and the art studios above it into one ensemble. The overlapping spatial structure
of the building creates surprising internal views, and at its best it can cross-connect the users and functions in unexpected ways.
As a contrast to the metallic exterior, the interior of the library is mainly wood. The floor is finished in heat-treated and oiled birch
and the walls of the 'canyons' are comprised of a pine trellis that frame the views into the classrooms, but at the same time create the
image of a classical library with its endlessly continuing walls. Art works were commissioned from artists Jaakko Tornberg and
Pekka Syrjä, to be placed at the end of the 'canyons'. Planting is also an essential part of the architecture. When arriving from the
north, one walks through a labyrinth of bushes arranged in even rows and the recessed yard contains Swedish whitebeams planted
in a grid, the foliage of which will as time passes form a green cloud completing the territory of the building to form a circle.
The pedestrian route is divided by steel rings from which lamps are suspended lighting the route; banners advertising the activities
of the building can also be stretched from them. During the first spring of the building's life a colourful series of sails hung from the
structure, the colour of which had been taken from a bouquet of tulips. (Heikkinen)
Lumen Mediacenter, University of Art and Design, Helsinki – Finland 1995 – 2000
12.000 m²
The University of Art and Design is located in the old industrial premises of Arabia Ceramics in the historic section of Helsinki,
where the city was founded in 1550. The area has a long tradition in industrial design manufacture. With ceramic production
moving into modern technologies, vacant parts of the old factory buildings are available for new uses. The audiovisual center will
partly be incorporated into renovated manufacturing structures adjoining the existing University of Art and Design. Film and
television studios, a black-box theater, and an auditorium will be located in a new addition. The center is an integral part of a larger
master plan for this industrial block. The extensive building complex projected can be seen as a small town, which will be organized
hierarchically into squares and boulevards, back alleys and service areas. The renovation of the old manufacturing structure will
retain its original roughness and authenticity, an approach that fits the practical needs of its new function. The project includes
rearranging the main entrance of the university as well. A glazed gallery connects the new entry across the block to the future main
square of a proposed residential suburb. The gallery will have spaces for exhibiting student projects and will also serve as the lobby
for the four-hundred-seat auditorium and the experimental theater. The Audiovisual Center implies numerous design layers of
function and mechanical and electrical systems, as well as advanced cable networks. The architecture relies on a balanced
coordination of these matrices. Its references are to microchips, in the sense of mastering complex flows of energy rather than of the
fetishism of hardware icons. (Heikkinen)
Helin & Co. Architects, Helsinki – Finland
http://www.helinco.fi
Libraries:
Sello Regional Library, Espoo – Finland 2003
Client: Real estate limited Kiinteistö Oy Kauppakeskus Sello, City of Espoo, 10.240 m², volume 63.500 m².
The new Regional Library includes a city service point, a consumer advice centre as well as commercial services – cafeteria,
bank, and real estate agents. The lobbies of the Library and the outside market place are visually connected through gigantic glass
wall zones. The tall glass walls are stiffened with net-type steel tension rod lattices, supported on the walkways running above the
lobbies. The walkways have composite constructions. The bridges in the central lobby are supported to three-storey slender steelframe
columns. The outside surfaces of the bridges are suspended from the steel girders of the top floor slap by means of vertical
tension rods. The interior of the library is airy and light. The railings and partition walls are made of glass and steel. The large frame
stiffening steel lattices have been utilised as architectural elements.
Functionally the building is divided into two longitudinal parts. The open public spaces, the Children´s and Young Peoples Sections
as well as commercial facilities are located towards the market place.The Music Section with the associated studios and the Adult´s
Fiction Section arelocated on the street side, followed by the service point of the City of Espoo and the consumer advice centre. The
reading rooms, studies, meetingrooms and the Non-fiction Sections are located on the second floor of the library. The high central
lobby, the exhibition space and the glazed aperture of the Young Peoples Section connect the floors. On both floors the spaces may
be separetd by glass partition walls or by large turningand sliding oak veneer doors. (Helin)
Joensuu Regional Library - North Karelia Provincial Library – Finland 1992
The floor area: 4217m² , Designed by: Architectural office Helin & Siitonen, Tuomo Siitonen and Tuomas Wichman,
Interior design Simo Heikkilä, The total expenditure of the construction € 8.500.000
The space solution reminds of the grid plan of the city with main streets crossing the building. The streets are spacious areas with
glass ceilings and can be crossed using bridges on the first and second floors.
The streets divide the space into four blocks. The public café and the multipurpose hall are situated in the entrance lobby, at the
crossroads. The spacious building also houses reading rooms, the North-Karelian collections, storage and offices on the ground floor.
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