‘The idea was to create a place that pro-
motes and celebrates reading,’ says Maas. He
describes the 33,700-m^2 project as ‘a step in
the direction of making the library more of
an all-in-one space for learning, consuming,
sharing, creating and experiencing – while at
the same time retaining its core as a space for
knowledge exchange’.
Within its louvred rectilinear shell, the
design can be understood, he says, ‘as a zip-
per that transitions gradually from a normal
building to an eye – its spherical core’. As
well as housing books, cascading floor-to-
ceiling shelving in composite stone serves
as seating and walkways that lead to more
private reading rooms. As Maas explains it,
‘the terraced bookshelves echo the form of
the sphere to create an interior, topographi-
cal landscape whose contours reach out
and wrap around the façade. In this way, the
stepped bookshelves within are represented
on the outside, with each level doubling up
as a louvre.’ The library’s glass façade opens
onto the park outside, making the interior
light, airy and welcoming.
The building is MVRDV’s fastest pro-
ject completion so far, going from first sketch
to opening ceremony in a mere three years.
The haste involved necessitated a few unwel-
come compromises, including axing the
planned access rooms that would have made
the upper ceiling shelves usable. The solu-
tion – aluminium plates printed with books- was ‘against our wishes’, says Maas. ‘We
suggested other options to solve the issue,
but none of them was selected.’ While easily
derided, the printed books don’t detract from
the visual impact of MVRDV’s giant sci-fi eye,
which is part of a new cultural centre consist-
ing of five buildings for the Binhai district of
the coastal city. ‘Gone are the days of musty,
carpeted rooms with outdated technology,’
says Maas. ‘Libraries provide a public means
of accessing knowledge and can also be
places of inspiration.’ – JS
mvrdv.nl
Books become an architectural
element in the library, adding colour
to an otherwise neutral palette.
‘The digital
can’t replace
the social
experience
of a library’SPACES 99