Library Buildings around the World

The librarian requested shelving, a classroom, computer areas, a media center, lounge area and a librarian’s desk. The young
principal imagined a space that could morph from a classroom to an informal crescent layout to a formal meeting area for the
teachers and parents.
We manipulated the space by creating a series of waves. Waves of knowledge, expressed as deep shelving with an undulating soffit
above and a waving flooring pattern below, create intimate spaces, where the young adults can linger. Low shelving units in the main
library space define the various reading areas. The use of light and dark wood characterizes the periphery and the middle section of
the space.
All furniture is modular, light and stackable. The ergonomic chairs and lounge furniture, as well as the modular tables can be
reconfigured easily to suit the needs of each day. The computer niches are set near the main desk, where the librarian will have an
unobstructed view to the whole library space.
All materials and finishes used in the project are environmentally friendly, recyclable and contain low VOC. (Pagnamenta)
PS 11R Thomas Dongan School, Staten Island, New York, NY – USA 2005
Atelier Pagnamenta Torriani has completed renovations of school libraries for the New York City School Construction Authority
throughout several boroughs of the city.
With the aim of spending energy where it matters, the firm has put a good deal of time into public schools in order to provide quality
for those who can benefit the most.
The Primary School library incorporates an activity strip that separates the integrated wall shelving from the classroom and
provides a continuous area for the kids to sit and play, as well as an area for the librarian.
The classroom is organized with modular light tables and ergonomic seating, which can be adjusted to fit multiple configurations for
parents’ or teachers meetings. (Pagnamenta)
Gibran Library, Byblos – Lebanon 2008
Literature:
Abitare, June 2005
The University desires to offer library spaces where the electronic access is ubiquitous and where books have a strong
presence. In addition to the 650 seats and open air reading spaces, the new library complex will include video conferencing
facilities, an auditorium and a museum. The library will be built in a limestone hill above the ancient town of Byblos,
overlooking the Mediterranean. The main elements will be layered deep into the hillside: the book depository at the back,
then the reading spaces and the lower components, the annex, the museum and the information technology areas, resting at
the foot of the hill generating a layered courtyard.A dynamic filter expressed by a series of skewed columns, symbolizing the
rhythm of Khalil Gibran’s verses in the Prophet, ties the project components together.The exterior skin is composed of
modular horizontal limestone layers alternatively forming a flat opaque surface or opening up to allow filtered daylight
inside. The limestone hills into which the library is placed are in dialogue with the building materials.The lower floors along
the courtyard are glazed, establishing a direct relationship between the library and the whole campus.Passive design features
rooted deep in the local culture and derived from the typology of the region were used throughout the project.The traditional
library as the permanent symbol of the values of civilization and the laboratory library where the users connect anywhere in
the world through electronic impulses coexist and interact side by side. The Byblos Gibran Library for the Lebanese
American University is currently under construction with an anticipated completion date of 2008. The architect of record is
ACE Engineering.
Nassar Library, Beirut – Lebanon 2006
The 70,000 s.f. library serves a projected enrollment of 4,000 students and accommodates a collection of over 250,000
volumes. Additionally the library provides 480 study spaces, periodical and audiovisual collections, lounge areas, offices,
classrooms, electronic access at each seat, and four levels of compact shelving. The interior architecture was developed to
optimize natural light, local materials and user needs. The low e-glass, the automatic interior shades, provide passive
strategies to protect the reading rooms, facing a northern exposure, from indirect glare. The Nassar Library for the
Lebanese American University was finished in Summer 2006. The opening ceremony took place on November 11, 2006. The
architect of record is SKP Architects and Planners. (Pagnamenta)
Paulett Taggart Architects, San Francisco, CA – USA
http://www.ptarc.com
Libraries:
Golden Gate Valley Branch Library, San Francisco, CA – USA 2011
Architect: Tom Eliot Fisch/Paulett Taggart Architects a joint venture, Project Team: Bobbie Fisch, CID, LEED AP
Paulett Taggart, FAIA, LEED AP, Todd Afflerbaugh, AIA, Lara Kaufmann, AIA, LEED AP, Client: Branch Library Improvement
Program, San Francisco Public Library, Gross Square Footage: 7,432 gsf, Site Area: 6,240 sf, Construction Cost: $3.5 million
Contractor: Fine Line Construction, Consultants: Architectural Resources Group (Historic Preservation), SOHA (Structural
Engineers), Timmons Design Engineers (Mechanical Engineers), C&N Engineers (Mechanical/Plumbing Engineers), Architecture &
Light (Lighting Design), Charles M Salter Associates Inc. (Acoustic Engineers), Professional Roof Inspection Service, LLC
(Waterproofing Consultant), Kate Keating Associates, Inc (Environmental Graphics), GLS Landscape Architects (Landscape
Design), Enovity, Inc. (Building Commissioning), Key Materials: Metal Panels – Alumawall, Storefront – US Aluminum, Terra
Cotta replacement – Gladding McBean & Co.
Awards/Certifications:
AIA San Francisco Chapter 2012 Honor Award for Historic Preservation
AIA California Council 2012 Honor Award for Architecture
LEED Gold – CI
David K. | December 7, 2012
As part of the San Francisco Public Library’s Branch Library Improvement Program, Tom Eliot Fisch and Paulett Taggart
Architects renovated the historic Golden Gate Valley Branch Library in the city’s Cow Hollow neighborhood. Completed in 1918 as
a Carnegie library, the two-level brick and terra cotta Beaux-Arts structure was designed by Ernest Coxhead in the shape of a
basilica. The project had to meet the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation & Guidelines for Rehabilitating
Historic Buildings and comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act while targeting Silver certification or greater under the
LEED for Commercial Interiors rating system. The project has exceeded its sustainability goal by achieving LEED Gold
certification.
The most significant challenge was to provide access for people with disabilities while maintaining the 7,400-square-foot structure’s
historic integrity. Rather than add a long ramp to the main entrance, which would distract from the original facade, the design team
created a new, small modern addition in the existing courtyard toward the building’s back corner. An aluminum and glass box, this
addition provides elevator access to both levels of the library and clearly reads as contemporary while complementing the historic
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