Library Buildings around the World

Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects, New Haven, CT – USA
http://www.pcparch.com
Minneapolis Central Library, Minneapolis, MN – USA 2006
353,000 square feet / 33,000 square meters
The Minneapolis Central Library is a vital civic and cultural center for downtown Minneapolis. The highly sustainable design — the
result of a collaborative, public process — reinvigorates the idea of the grand urban library, making it accessible and appealing to
new generations.
The library is located between two of the city’s most active thoroughfares: Nicollet Mall, the central shopping and business district,
and Hennepin Avenue, the city’s main street for the performing arts. Two street grids meet at the site, inspiring the building’s
design: two rectangular volumes, one aligned with each grid. The two volumes come together at the Commons, an enclosed public
space that joins the two avenues.
The Commons is a six-story glass atrium that fills the building with light and activity. This space is topped by a metal “wing” that
appears to hover overhead, extending beyond the building at both ends. Visible from afar, the wing is a new landmark for downtown
Minneapolis. The design also accommodates the addition of a planetarium dome, which would project from the corner of the roof.
Architecturally, the two halves of the building are reminiscent of warehouse lofts, with large open floors structured by a grid of
concrete columns. A strip of ochre Minnesota limestone outlines the edges of the floor plates on the building’s exterior and glass
walls stretch from floor to ceiling. Windows vary in scale, depth and transparency and include surface patterns digitally translated
from photographs of four Minnesota landscapes: water ripples, birch trees, snowy branches, and prairie grasses. The result is an
active, lively composition.
The library’s design includes many sustainable elements. The roof of the building is planted with drought-resistant ground cover,
creating an 18,500-square-foot roof garden that slows storm water runoff and reduces the urban heat island effect. An under-floor
ventilation system reduces cooling costs by 20 percent, and the combination of copious daylight and energy-efficient light fixtures
contributes to a building that exceeds Minnesota’s energy code requirements by 27 percent. Finally, materials with high recycled
content and low volatile organic compounds were specified, and 96 percent of the demolition and construction waste was recycled.
(Pelli)
Sarah M. and Charles E. Seay Building, University of Texas, Austin, Texas – USA 2002
175,000 square feet / 16,000 square meters, 2002
The Seay Building is the first project completed under the Pelli Clarke Pelli master plan for the University of Texas at Austin. The
building extends the Spanish Mediterranean vocabulary of Paul Cret’s original master plan in a new structure that holds street
edges and encloses a landscaped courtyard.
The building, which houses the Department of Psychology and Human Ecology’s Division of Human Development and Family
Sciences, contains wet laboratories, a library, computer classrooms, student counseling and observation rooms, acoustic isolation
chambers, faculty and administrative offices and a preschool.
Following the natural slope of the site, the building steps down from a five-story lab wing on the west, around the landscaped
courtyard before ending on the west side in a three-story wing scaled for the preschool. Five main entrances with appropriate
security are located around the building perimeter, while the building’s formal entry on the southeast corner is an open doubleheight
space with a grand stair that brings visitors up to the reception area. From this corner on the fourth floor, the library affords
commanding views of the campus and the state Capitol.
The building’s materials and details are designed as modern interpretations of the original Cass Gilbert and Paul Cret buildings that
form the heart of the campus. A solid stone base, Texas brick body, and glassy top express the tripartite composition of the older
buildings. The painted wood soffits found on the roof overhangs of many UT buildings are recreated on the Seay Building with
brightly colored enameled metal panels that will not fade in the Texas sun.
The courtyard, clearly defined by the rectangular bars of the building, imparts a sense of life and energy with the swooping curves of
its plantings and walkways. The focus of the courtyard, which has a patio on the south side, is a center seating area used as an
outdoor classroom. A modest fountain in the center, fed by a rill of water that flows alongside the walkway, creates a cool oasis.
(Pellli)
Greenwich Library Addition and Ronavation, Greenwich, CT – USA 1999
100,000 square feet / 9,000 square meters, 1999
This addition to the Greenwich Library joins the original 1931 building and a 1960 addition. The design is respectful of the new
building’s context, of the urban qualities of the surroundings, and of the civic nature of the public library. With two large curved
areas of glass, each one overlooking a small open courtyard, the building is transparent, friendly and welcoming.
Although the site is at the edge of the retail center of Greenwich, almost all patrons of the library arrive by car, and many are
dropped off and picked up. Such drop-offs and pick-ups are not allowed on the street because of its heavy traffic. This dictated that
the main entrance of the library be towards its parking lot. A street entrance for pedestrians is on the original building, and the
Library presents a very urban façade to the street.
Upon entering, patrons are greeted by a Welcome Center and continue along a circulation path called Main Street, which is defined
by a double row of columns visible from the entrance. The east end of Main Street ends in a new reading area located along a large,
curved, glass wall facing an open garden. Patrons can ascend to the second level on elevators or via a dramatic metal and wood
curved stair suspended from the ceiling. A counter curved, two-story glass wall serves as a backdrop for the stair. The glass wall
views onto a courtyard, open to the sidewalk, where an existing large oak tree has been preserved.
The New Book area is in a two-story public gathering space, while another public gathering space on the second level offers views of
the expanded gallery through the glass entry wall. The Children’s Room is a comfortable, friendly place with child-sized furniture in
the form of train cars, while the Program Room features a fiber optic ceiling display of a starry sky.
At the eastern end of the building, by the main entry driveway, the building includes a new reading room in a sculptural form that
combines the geometries of a triangle and a circle. This element marks the main auto entrance and announces the special character
of the new Greenwich Library. (Pelli)
Physics and Astronomy Building, University of Washington, Seattle, WA – USA 1994
265,000 square feet / 25,000 square meters, 1994
A major research and instructional building on the University of Washington campus, the Physics and Astronomy Building includes
laboratories, faculty and administrative offices, classrooms, computer facilities, four auditoria, a planetarium and a library. The
building consists of a six-story tower, a four-story horizontal building, and a two-story structure, all resting on a one-story basement
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