Library Buildings around the World

The project consists of two buildings. Arne Rettedal house is a central building for the University of Stavanger, and includes the
central feature with auditoriums, administration, drama and media. Building for Teacher Education is an extension of existing
buildings and also the Department of science.
Total floor area is 13.700m ².
Rådhus med Hovedbibliotek, Tromsø – Norway 2003 -2005
Total floor area is 20.500m2 BRA. Total costs for the building (including tax) is estimated at 02 550.mill. kr.
Fokuskvartalet ( Focus District (Tromsø Town Hall, cinema and library)), Tromsø, Architect: HRTB AS Arkitekter MNAL,
Client: Tromsø Municipality, Construction System / Materials: Concrete; steel; glass , Building Type: Office; library; village hall
Literature:
Byggekunst 7/2005, pp. 52-58
The town hall complex also houses a cinema and library. It is located on the street Grønnegata, which also happens to be one of the
town's busiest streets. However, the town hall's official façade overlooks the town square. This façade has slender soaring concrete
columns that support a thin roof. The town square extends from Torghuken, by the Tromsø Sound, beyond and up the hill towards
the old town hall (Rådstua), terminating above the town centre in the west. The cultural centre (1984) and the town hall are situated
alongside the south-side of the town square. In general, this area has a strong communal quality. The library's glass façade and its
uniquely shaped roof (a hyperbole paraboloid) make it the most characteristic building in the town centre. It has upheld this
reputation since it was built as a cinema in the 1970s. In its conversion into a library, the structure underwent a significant
transformation. The dense walls were torn down, along with the entire interior of the building. Only the roof shell structure and the
four supporting points remained standing. In order to make room for a well functioning town hall, the old town hall was also
eradicated.
Assignments for Tromsø by Beata Nemeth Winther. The project was begun in 2000 and was completed in 2005. The purpose of the
building project is to collect the municipal administration and library in the "Town Hall Quarter, and to establish a new cinema
with 6 halls and an open" venue "for use at important occasions for the town. Competition draft showed how three existing
buildings, if necessary, could be integrated into a total new project with great ability to adapt to changing application requirements.
Of the three buildings are now in the roof of Focus cinema that will be left. When the main building is finished and new movie
theaters are used to the old movie theater torn out and a new library listed under the distinctive roof.
Jarmund / Vigsnæs AS, Oslo – Norway
http://www.jva.no
Libraries:
Oslo School of Architecture, Oslo – Norway 2002
Architects: Jarmund/Vigsnæs AS Architects MNAL / Einar Jarmund & Håkon Vigsnæs, Client: Statsbygg / Directorate of Public
Construction and Property, Gross Area: 10.900 sqm
Awards:
Anton Christian Houens Fonds Diplom 2003
Oslo Bys Arkitekturpris 2002
Blueprint Architecture Award 2002
finalist best refurbished public building, Norsk Lyspris 2001
Sited in an old factory block the new internal court of the school is connected to the adjacent riverside bank. Parts of the complex are
torn down to bring light into the deeper parts of the building, structures are sandblasted to expose the consistency of the concrete,
and the new building parts and walls are made transparent to secure an aimed social transparency of the institution. (Jarmund)
The new Oslo School of Architecture is based in an existing building from 1938, located by the Akerselva River in the eastern part of
Oslo. The school is part of a larger effort to revitalise this former industrial area for education-related use. The long-term aim is a
campus for arts education along the riverbank.
The project won 1st prize in an open architectural competition in 1998. The exterior of the existing building has a conservation
status. The architects have kept the block open towards the river, and combined the new programme with the logic of the existing
building together with the surroundings in one spatial sequence.
An access court has been cut out of the existing 1st floor slab, marking the entrance and bringing daylight in to the ground floor
foyer. A strip has been cut out of the existing slab along the inside of the existing building, bringing daylight to the surrounding
functions. A simple U-shaped circulation zone is established along the strip. A new string of teaching rooms completes the U and
forms a bridge across the entrance area.
The ground floor is occupied by communal functions such as canteen, auditoria an exhibition spaces, workshops an library. All
design studios and teaching rooms are on the 1st floor, with a view of the open interior courtyard. Offices for the research- and
administration staff are on the 2nd floor.
New external walls are made by an insulated facade system, with double-glazing units in three different colours. The interior is
intended to retain the workshop character of the existing building. The existing concrete structure has been exposed an chalkblasted,
and all cutting surfaces are left untreated. Floors in the main circulation spaces are polished concrete, with linoleum
elsewhere and special oiled ash on floor and walls of the auditorium. Internal partitions on ground and 1st floor are covered with
varnished fibrocement boards, with painted plasterboards partitions on the 2nd floor. Extensive use of glass partitions serves to
retain a maximum overview and transparency.
Roof garden and covered areas have diffusion watering systems. Lawn areas subject to heavy wear and tear have been reinforced
with metal grilles.
New service installations have been concentrated into seven exposed ventilation plats on the roof, to minimise horizontal ducting.
The building has sprinkler projection throughout. 13.06.2008 Archdaily (http://www.archdaily.com)
L2 Arkitekter AS, Oslo – Norway
http://www.l2.no
Libraries:
Sandnessjøen Bad og Kulturhus, Sandnessjøen - Norway in design
3