Library Buildings around the World

Dyrvik Arkitekter, Oslo – Norway
http://www.dyrvik.no
Libraries:
Asker Culture, Asker – Norway 2004
1. premium limited project competition 1999, Asker Kommune, Extension / conversion of content: cinema, concert and theater,
libraries, youth and elderly, rental offices and business, 24 000 m2 gross area, Pilot project in October 2001, Detailed Project in
collaboration with Link sheet. 2002-2003, Completed Autumn 2004, Official opening October 23, 2004
Asker culture was completed 23 October 2004. The municipality invited in 1999 to a restricted project competition was won by
Dyrvik Architects A / S. The mission was to rebuild and to the existing culture from 1982. The building was constructed in
cooperation between Dyrvik Architects A / S and Link Architects A / S. The cultural center is located right in the center Asker
Asker culture consists of 25,000 square feet over six floors and can accommodate a large theater / concert hall, two black box
theaters, meeting rooms, festal, rehearsal hall, cinema, library, gallery, youth club with a clean coffee shop, senior center and several
restaurants. 7000 square meters of office space on the 5th and 6 floor used by the South Eastern Health. Entrance from Church
Road. West Viken health rents offices in parts of 3 floor. Also, these offices have access from Church Road.
(http://www.askerkulturhus.no/Om-kulturhuset)
Kolbotn Kultur- og Aktivitetshus Oppegård-Kolbotn – Norway 2005
1. premie i prosjekt konkurranse 1998, Kolbotn Torg AS, 10800 m2 BTA, Byggestart sommer 2003, Ferdig oktober 2005
Kultur- og aktivitetshus med saler for teater, musikk og dans, verksted, kulturskole, bibliotek, eldresenter og samfunnshus (Dyrvik)
Helen & Hard As, Stavanger – Norway
Siv Helene Stangeland, Reinhard Kropf
http://www.hha.no
Libraries:
Flekkefjord Cultural House, Flekkefjord – Norway 2013
Team: Dag Strass, Elliet Spring, Moritz Groba (competition)
The project, on the waterfront of Flekkefjord as town on Norway’s south coast, incorporates a theater hall, a cinema, a library, a
gallery, a youth club and a cultural school. The project has recently been approved for construction.
Flekkefjord’s narrow streets are lined with traditional timber houses, whose small scale contrasts starkly with the massive volumes
of the new Cultural Center. Mediating between these different scales drove the design process. The diverse functions of the project
were divided into four individual “houses” and the spaces between them creating gathering and circulation spaces. The “between
spaces” have been filled with a fanned, continuous stair which links the forecourt, the façade and the levels of the foyer within. The
facades of the houses, both interior and exterior, are woven together to create three-dimensional public concourse. (Helen)
Vennesla Bibliothek, Vennesla – Norway 2011
Client: Vennesla Kommune, Team Helen & Hard: Reinhard Kropf, Siv Helene Stangeland, Håkon Minnesjord Solheim, Caleb Reed,
Randi Augenstein, Competition entry: 2009, Completion: 2011, Budget: 66,4 mill NOK (excl.tax), Area: 1938 sqm gross
The new library in Vennesla comprises a library, a café, meeting places and administrative areas and links an existing community
house and learning centre together. Supporting the idea of an inviting public space, all main public functions have been gathered
into one generous space allowing the structure combined with furniture and multiple spatial interfaces to be visible in the interior
and from the exterior. An integrated passage brings the city life into and through the building. Furthermore, the new building was
open and easy accessible from the main city square, knitting together the existing urban fabric. This was achieved by a large glass
facade and urban loggia providing a protected outdoor seating area. In this project, we further developed a rib concept to create
useable hybrid structures that combine a timber construction with all technical devices and the interior. The whole library consists
of 27 ribs made of prefabricated glue-laminated timber elements and CNC cut plywood boards. These ribs inform the geometry of
the roof, as well as the undulating orientation of the generous open space, with personal study zones nestled along the perimeter.
Each rib consists of a glue laminated timber beam and column, acoustic absorbents which contain the air conditioning ducts, bent
glass panes that serve as lighting covers and signs, and integrated reading niches and shelves. The gradually shifting shapes of the
ribs are generated through adapting to the two adjacent buildings and also through spatial quality and functional demands for the
different compartments of the library. Each end façade has been shaped according to the specific requirements of the site. At the
main entrance, the rib forms the loggia which spans the width of the entire square. A main intention has also been to reduce the
energy need for all three buildings through the infill concept and the use of high standard energy saving solutions in all new parts.
A symbiosis of structure, technical infrastructure, furniture and interior in one architectonic element creates a strong spatial identity
that meets the client’s original intent to mark the city’s cultural centre. The winning competition entry for a new library in Vennesla
comprises library, café, meeting places and administration. The project links an existing community house and learning center
together and is planned to be a new high quality urban space reinforcing the citys cultural center. The project is based on 5 concepts
woven together: - To bring the city life into and through the building. To create multiple layers of use and flow to be visible in the
interior and exterior. To develope a timber frame construction which also contains technical installations, bookshelves, seating ect.
To establish an urban loggia with a roof that covers the entry facade and is an interpretation of the existing citys facade towards the
main street. Through the infill concept reduce the energy need for all three buildings. The combination of structure, technical
infrastructure and furniture in one architectonic element creates a strong spatial identity which met the clients original intent to
mark the cultural signifigance of the city enter. (Helen)
HRTB AS Arkitekter MNAL, Oslo – Norway
http://www.hrtb.no
Libraries:
Universität Stavanger – Norway 2006
1.prize open EEA competition 2000. Won in collaboration with Stein Halvorsen Architects AS., Mission of Public Construction.
Conducted by HRTB. Completed in January 2006.
2