Libraries: a design manual

Der Bautyp Bibliotheken unterlag in den letzten zehn Jahren einem enormen Wandel. Meilensteine wie Rem Koolhaas‘ Stadtbibliothek in Seattle von 2004 definierten den Typus komplett neu und spiegelten die Entwicklung vom elitären Bildungstempel hin zum öffentlichen Wohnzimmer. Mischformen zwischen Bibliothek und Kaufhaus oder Theater entstanden. Zudem ist die Allgegenwart elektronischer Medien planerisch zu berücksichtigen; jede neue Bibliothek enthält heute Bereiche komplett ohne Bücher. Dieses Grundlagenwerk stellt in einem breiten systematischen Teil die entwurflichen, technischen und planerischen Voraussetzungen des Bibliotheksbaus dar. Spezialaspekte wie RFID, Zeichensysteme, Akustik oder besondere statische Anforderungen werden in eigenen Beiträgen von Experten erläutert. In vier Kategorien – Nationalbibliotheken, große öffentliche Bibliotheken, kleine öffentliche Bibliotheken, wissenschaftliche Bibliotheken – werden schließlich ca. 40 internationale wegweisende Projekte dokumentiert, darunter Jo Coenens Openbare Bibliotheek Amsterdam, Alvaro Sizas Kleinod der Stadtbibliothek für Viana do Castelo oder Mecanoos 2013 eröffnete Library of Birmingham.

Libraries as a building type have been subjected to substantial changes in particular in the past ten years. Milestones such as Rem Koolhaas’ Seattle Central Library from 2004 reinvented the typology completely and reflected a development from elitist temple of learning to a public living room. Hybrids between library and department store or theater were conceived. Today, the ubiquity of electronic devices and media needs to be taken into account by the designer: every new library has areas without any books now. This work of reference explains systematically all technological and planning requirements of library design. Special features such as RFID, signage, acoustics or specific structural load issues are explained in texts by experts from the fields of architecture and library science. Finally, approximately 40 best-practice case studies of contemporary library design are documented extensively. They are organized in four categories – national libraries, large public libraries, small public libraries, university libraries – and comprise high-profile examples such as Jo Coenen’s Openbare Bibliotheek Amsterdam, Alvaro Siza’s Public Library Viana do Castelo in Portugal or Mecanoo’s Library of Birmingham from 2013.

Front matter --; Contents --; Preface --; The Building Type and its Emergence --; The Library in its Social Context /; The Library User as Customer /; On the Typology of the Library /; Form and Function in Library Design /; Public Libraries in the United States /; Planning Processes and Spatial Organization --; Towards the Design of Libraries /; Plan Configuration and Layout /; Library Spaces for Children, Teens and Young Adults /; Dialogues: Client, Librarian, Architect /; Funding Options /; Technical Requirements --; Structural Concepts /; Climate Control /; Lighting and Illumination /; Daylighting /; Interior Design and Equipment --; Refurbishment and Building Adaptation /; Shelving /; Orientation and Wayfinding Systems /; Book Security and RFID /; National Libraries --; Introduction --; Det Kongelige Bibliotek --; National Library Singapore --; Biblioteca Central Estatal de Guanajuato Wigberto Jiménez Moreno --; National Library of China --; Deutsche Nationalbibliothek --; Large Public Libraries --; Introduction --; Burton Barr Central Library --; Millennium Library --; Seattle Central Library --; OBA - Openbare Bibliotheek Amsterdam --; Stadtbibliothek am Mailänder Platz --; Library of Birmingham --; Small Public Libraries --; Introduction --; Peckham Library and Media Centre --; Biblioteca Pública Usera José Hierro --; ImaginOn: The Joe & Joan Martin Center --; Whitechapel Idea Store --; Miriam Matthews Hyde Park Branch Library --; Arabian Public Library --; Biblioteca Municipal --; Parque Biblioteca España --; Médiathèque André Malraux --; Vennesla Bibliotek og Kulturhus --; Biblioteca Municipal de Almada --; Biblioteca Pública de Ceuta --; Gando School Library --; University Libraries --; Introduction --; Central Library Technische Universiteit Delft --; Law Library Universität Zürich --; IKMZ - Informations-, Kommunikationsund Medienzentrum Brandenburgische Technische Universität --; Philological Library Freie Universität --; Lewis Library Princeton University --; Jacob-und-Wilhelm- Grimm-Zentrum Humboldt Universität --; Rolex Learning Center Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne --; Joe and Rika Mansueto Library University of Chicago --; Kai Feng Humanities and Social Sciences Library Tsinghua University --; CINiBA - Centrum Informacji Naukowej i Biblioteka Akademicka Uniwersytet Śląski --; Appendix --; The Authors --; Index of Names --; Index of Places --; Illustration Credits / Wong, Liliane / Lushington, Nolan --; Blake, Norma --; Kleefisch-Jobst, Ursula --; Schmitz, Karl-Heinz --; Lushington, Nolan --; Chestnutt, Rebecca --; Wong, Liliane --; Wong, Liliane / Lushington, Nolan --; Werner, Klaus Ulrich --; Wong, Liliane --; Rudorf, Wolfgang --; Rudorf, Wolfgang --; Rudorf, Wolfgang --; Boubekri, Mohamed --; Vos, Aat --; Rudorf, Wolfgang / Wong, Liliane --; Franke-Maier, Michael --; Seeliger, Frank --