Architecture studios Mecanoo and OTJ Architects have added a rooftop garden and statement staircases to the Martin Luther King Jr Memorial Library in Washington DC, as part of its renovation of the Mies van der Rohe-designed building. Dutch architecture office Mecanoo collaborated with New Orleans studio OTJ Architects for the project, which involved a three-year-long…

A responsive, people-centered front-of-house, is essential for today’s modern library. In this blog, we are exploring how to choose service desks that create comfortable and engaging spaces that are fit for purpose. In particular, we will focus on the new generation of smart desks that are functional, adaptable, open and ergonomic; service desks that enhance…

Maru Architecture has revitalised the central library of Matsubara in Osaka prefecture, Japan, by adding a monolithic extension floating on a serene pond. Modeled on a historical Japanese tumulus surrounded by large burial mounds and moats, the library, which is also known as the ‘Forest of Reading’, encourages locals to enjoy peaceful moments of solitude,…

Helsinki-based JKMM Architects has renovated and extended a library named Fyyri in the Finnish town of Kirkkonummi. The studio doubled the size of the previous library and wrapped it entirely in a copper facade to create a counterpoint to the town’s medieval stone church. “The core urban concept was to design a modern counterpart to…

The Yale University Center for Innovative Thinking by architecture studio Weiss/Manfredi is an elliptical glass pavilion for students on the New Haven campus. New York City-based Weiss/Manfredi designed the two-storey pavilion to stand out from the brutalist and gothic-style buildings of the historic Yale University. The pavilion was built on top of an existing laboratory…

The collaborative team of Mecanoo and MAYU Architects has completed a public library in Tainan — Taiwan‘s oldest city. The design references the history of the region, which comprises remnants of maritime trade with Europe from the 17th century, the Chinese Ming dynasty, and Japanese settlements from the beginning of the 20th century. The library…

In Ontario’s city of Brampton, the Springdale Library and Komagata Maru Park by RDH Architects (RDHA) introduces an inclusive gathering place, a counterpoint to the otherwise flat suburban area, and a point of pride for the Canadian city. The project site was physically constrained, framed by a commercial plaza to the east, a main road…

Dutch street artist Jan is De Man, in collaboration with Tattoo and graffiti artist Deef Feed, have painted a massive bookcase on the side of an apartment building in Utrecht, Netherlands. The Trompe l’oeil mural features a three-level bookcase — one for each floor of the building — featuring a selection of both the artist’s…

Chinese architecture studio MAD has designed a library in the city of Haikou, China that is intended “to be a wormhole that transcends time and space”. Named the Wormhole Library, the structure is currently under construction within Century Park overlooking the South China Sea in the city of Haikou, which is on the Chinese island…

Kengo Kuma & Associates, in collaboration with Mad Arkitekter and Buro Happold Engineering, have been selected as the winning proposal for the new Ibsen Library in Skien, Norway. The project pays tribute to world-renowned playwright, Henrik Ibsen, by creating an open and engaging cultural hub in his Norwegian birthplace. Kengo Kuma‘s proposal intends to reflect…