Library Buildings around the World

Branding graphics, bright interior finishes and comfortable contemporary furniture reinforce the retail-library fusion. The project,
sponsored by the King County Library Foundation, is welcoming and user-friendly.
The Library opens onto the mall on two sides. From the mall, the space invites entry through light, color and depth. Herman Miller
office systems furniture, adapted for computer use, commands the center of the space. The work stations accommodate one to three
people.
Books cover the side walls; people and computers share the middle ground, and the librarian has a view of the entire space. The
interior desiExterior restoration and repairs will extend the life of this community landmark. Interior improvements increase
operational efficiency, providing a cozier, more comfortable space for patrons.gn conveys the Library’s identity within the mall.
Content choices introduce the library system to the consummate retail environment.
The Library is as a refuge: family members sit, read and surf the internet, waiting for shoppers in a relaxed setting. This is not a
"fast food library”: visitors are invited to linger.
A specific design vocabulary defines the children's area. The Library's commitment to young readers continues at Southcenter –
distinctive carpeting and low shelving provide a protected area for children. The circular bookcases help identify their special area.
(SHKS)
Green Lake West Seattle Library, Seattle, WA – USA 2004
Green Lake and West Seattle Libraries, two of Seattle Public Library’s seven Carnegie libraries, were built in 1910. Both libraries
are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. As part of the Libraries for All bond measure, SHKS Architects worked with
the Library and community to renovate and protect these treasured community assets.
At Greenlake, a redesigned circulation desk and patron ‘holds’ area reflects changing trends in library use. Windows were either
replaced or restored based on a thorough window survey. Original woodwork was restored. SHKS designed a light diffuser to
reduce glare improving the skylight’s function; maintaining historic character.
Exterior restoration and repairs will extend the life of this community landmark. Interior improvements increase operational
efficiency, providing a cozier, more comfortable space for patrons.
The West Seattle Library received a full exterior upgrade including brick and terra cotta preservation, seismic anchorage and
window renovation. The project also improved mechanical, electrical and communications systems, adaptively reused a basement
storage area, converting it to a new meeting room and rehabilitated the interior.
Changes in the reading room incorporate new technology needs while maintaining the original finishes. Cabinets designed to deal
with the technology of the past – books, record bins and cassette tapes – were modified to accommodate new technologies. (SHKS)
SHW Group, Plano, TX – USA
http://www.shwgroup.com
Libraries:
Grand Valley State University – Library of the Future (Mary Idema Pew Library Larning and
Information Commons), Allendale, MI – USA 2013
A model for the new 21st- century digital learning environment, the Grand Valley State University Library of the Future is a student
and user-focused design highlighting concepts of retail, exhibition and interactive technologies. Located along the main campus axis
and framing the campus icon - the clock tower - the library is replacing an award-winning Zumberge Library constructed in 1968.
The siting and design of the new building focuses on valuable sustainable concepts, such as a green roof and natural lighting, and the
landmark is currently seeking LEED certification. To achieve this new higher-education learning model, SHW intensely investigated
social work patterns: group, casual, serendipitous and formal. These social patterns, in addition to learning patterns, were integral
drivers in the design of this facility. Ease of access to information, books, catalogues and technology were also critical considerations
for the SHW architects involved in the project. The resulting design provides a variety of learning and interaction spaces, including
bibliographic training, a café, and individual large-group and small-group study and instructional spaces. The large group area and
circulation space transition to flexible study space and glass partitions are used to provide privacy, sound control and interaction
space for up to 10 people. Concepts of retail, interactive technology, display and workstations work harmoniously to provide this
interactive and functional space. (SHW Group)
H.D. Woodson STEM High School, Washington, DC – USA 2011
241.700 sqf.
Intended to become the flagship of the District of Columbia’s public school system, High School 2008 will reflect the highest
standard of architectural design for education and it will serve as a model of heightened expectation throughout the District. SHW
Group and its educational strategist, Cambridge Strategic Services, worked with High School 2008 staff to establish a shared
understanding of the meaning and the facility’s design implications of the instructional vision of Science, Technology, Engineering
and Mathematics (STEM). SHW evaluated a variety of options to renovate and/or demolish the existing school structure and
developed alternative timelines for delivery, including phasing plans for an occupied facility. The design firm also established
sustainable design criteria and implementation strategies while facilitating staff and community dialogues. High School 2008 will
employ state-of-the-art technology for instructional programs, building security and energy performance-monitoring systems. The
214,700-square-foot project is being developed as a LEED-Gold facility and incorporates geothermal wells, rainwater harvesting,
vegetated roofs, and solar energy collection for domestic hot water. (SHW Group)
Needville High School, Needville, TX – USA 2010
Located in Fort Bend County and approximately 30 minutes southwest of Houston, the Needville community and its school district
officials have a 20-year partnership with SHW Group. They trusted the firm to develop a design for the high school that will arise on
a 250-acre site, defining the area’s independent and agricultural nature. Envisioned as an assembly of smaller structures integrally
connected with the landscape, the desire for the facility was a design that avoided the conventional brick-box style of most schools,
evoked the agrarian traditions found throughout Needville, and allowed students to be in grade-level, small learning communities.
These goals allowed the design team the opportunity to explore Needville architectural character from Main Street to the rural
countryside and to study, document and photograph the different elements that make up its community. In this exploration, the
design team noted in the structures the emphasis on function over aesthetics that is prevalent in rural life. From this came the
inspiration of Needville High School’s design – a machine aesthetic with an agrarian theme. At the facility’s heart is a central student
gathering space designed as a silo feature and flanked by two academic wings housing the small learning communities. These
communitites are organized around a courtyard that frames the view to the science building – a distinctive campus feature with
exhaust hoods and a green screen in the form of latticework and vines on the west façade. Transparency is carried throughout the
facility’s interior spaces, with ample glass framing the landscape and serving to acknowledge the land’s integral role within the
community. Other agrarian-themed features: a field wall of stacked stones in the library corrugated metal panels on the curved
auditorium walls that along with natural light, frame the auditorium stage exposed steel trusses in the gymnasium, which is flooded
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