Library Buildings around the World

Gehry Partners, LLP, Los Angeles – USA
http://www.foga.com
Libraries:
Science Library, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ – USA 2008
The Science Library, located on a two acre site on the main campus, is envisioned as an efficient, easily accessible environment
conducive to the research requirements of the Princeton University community in the 21st century. In addition to providing
classrooms, offices, and public space, the Science Library will house the Biology, Chemistry, Geosciences and Map/GIS print
collections, and will provide facilities for the New Media Lab, the Educational Technology Center, and the Princeton Institute for
Computational Science and Engineering. The Science Library's mission to further the advancement of learning at Princeton
University extends to the provision of a wide variety of electronic resources, including catalogs, indexes, reference tools, full text
electronic books, electronic journals, numeric data, digital maps and images. Primary exterior materials include stainless steel,
brick, glass, and painted plaster. The Science Library's mission to further the advancement of learning at Princeton University
extends to the provision of a wide variety of electronic resources, including catalogs, indexes, reference tools, full text electronic
books, electronic journals, numeric data, digital maps and images. Primary exterior materials include stainless steel, brick, glass,
and painted plaster. ( http://www.arcspace.com )
Gensler, San Francisco, CA – USA
http://www.gensler.com
Libraries:
Julia Idson Building, Houston, TX – USA 2011
Constructed in 1926, the Julia Ideson Building is one of Houston’s civic treasures. A $32 million renovation of the former main
library resulted from a dynamic public/private partnership between the City of Houston and the non-profit Julia Ideson Library
Preservation Partners (JILPP). Providing a repository for Houston memorabilia and rare archival material, the “new” library
serves as the official city reception space and venue for exhibits, meetings and special events. Designed by noted Boston architect
Ralph Adams Cram, the Spanish Renaissance building is replete with polychrome painted ceilings, intricate woodwork, marble
columns and lofty public spaces. The restored library introduces a south wing and reading garden that were unrealized features of
Cram’s original design. (Gensler)
Leventhal Map Center, Boston Public Library, Boston, MA – USA 2011
The Norman B. Leventhal Map Center at the Boston Public Library, created in 2004, is a nonprofit organization established as a
public- private partnership between the Library and philanthropist Norman Leventhal. Its mission is to use the collection of 200,000
maps and 5,000 atlases for the enjoyment and education of all through exhibitions, educational programs, and a website that
includes more than 3,700 digitized maps at maps.bpl.org. The map collection is global in scope, dating from the 15th century to the
present, with a particular strength in maps and atlases from the New England region, American Revolutionary War period, nautical
charts, and world urban centers.
The Leventhal Map Center is located on the first floor of the Library's historic McKim Building in Copley Square. It includes an
exhibition gallery that features changing thematic exhibitions, a public learning center with research books and computers, and a
reading room for rare map research. Other elements include a world globe three feet in diameter and a Kids Map Club with map
puzzles, books and activities.
Educational programs for students in grades K to 12 are offered to school groups on site and in the classroom. More than 100 lesson
plans based on national standards are available on the website, and professional development programs for teachers are scheduled
regularly throughout the year.
The Leventhal Map Center is ranked among the top ten in the United States for the size of its collection, the significance of its
historic (pre-1900) material, and its advanced digitization program. It is unique among the major collections because it also
combines these features with exceptional educational programs to advance geographic literacy among students in grades K to 12 and
enhance the teaching of subjects from history to mathematics to language arts. The collection is also the second largest in the country
located in a public library, ensuring unlimited access to these invaluable resources for scholars, educators, and the general public.
(http://www.bpl.org/research/nblmapcenter.htm)
South Texas College of Law, Fred Parks Law Library, Houston, TX – USA 2001
Awards:
AIA Design Award 2002
The Fred Parks Library is a flexibble, inviting space that considers the long hours law students spend in libraries. With its entry
linked to the primary college entrance, a grand stair welcomes students and staff to a two-story lobby on the second floor of the
library. This open space is illuminated by a corner curtain wall system that transmits natural light. The upper level of the library
includes a conference center and a terrace with views of the Houston skyline for reading and studying. (Gensler)
Biola University Library, La Mirada, CA – USA 2001
Peter Gisolfi Associates, Hastings-on-Hudson, NY – USA
http://www.petergisolfiassociates.com
Libraries:
Darien Public Library, Darien, CT – USA 2009
A long, flexible process helped the new Darien Library become the Northeast's first projected LEED Gold library building, while
truly reinventing the public library
By Louise Parker Berry & Alan Kirk Gray -- Library Journal, 05/15/2009
The new Darien Library opened on January 10, 2009, a snowy day in our corner of Connecticut. After the speeches, the governor's
proclamation, and the ribbon cutting, 7200 revelers headed toward the building (the crowds were so large, it took them more than 20
minutes to make their way in). Some 10,000 people visited that weekend.
When we first started thinking about how to provide new services to our community ten years ago, we had no idea how long it would
take us, how much it would cost, or how, exactly, our plans would be realized. Certainly we had no idea of the technology involved,
or that we would end up pursuing LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification. And we could never have
imagined the extraordinary building into which we'd eventually be moving.
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