Public library design

On June 18th, Oslo’s new public library, Deichman Bjørvika, opened its doors to the public. Located on Oslo’s waterfront, and spanning six floors and 140,000 square feet, “Norway’…

Image 3 of 8 from gallery of Cambridge Public Library wins Harleston Parker Medal / William Rawn Associates and Ann Beha Architects. © Robert Benson

MVRDV has unveiled designs for Wuhan Library in China with a sweeping form that takes cues from the topography of its surroundings.

Northside Library by NBBJ, Libraries are in transition. Once a point of knowledge dissemination and quiet introspection, they are becoming places to meet, socialize, study, hang out and plugin. Historically, we have seen a library’s civic value shift from a place for things, now, to a place for people.

Seattle Public Library by OMA

With thoughtful landscape design and active public spaces, the Dublin Branch library brings an urban center of gravity to a rapidly densifying suburb of Columbus, Ohio. The third project designed by NBBJ with the Columbus Metropolitan Library, the new Dublin library doubles the square footage of the previous building and ...

A modern library in China, with a round design and a shallow rooftop pool.

Kazunobu Nakamura’s brilliant library design changed the lives of the Kikuchi residents – it sparked a love for reading, a love for libraries, but most importantly – a love for the city.