Future Systems wins Czech National Library Competition
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 03. 6.07
London's blobby green Future Systems has won the international competition to design the National Library of the Czech Republic. The architects note that "as Google puts evey book on line, we still need places where you can smell ink on paper, explore bindings and share a space with other to whom books, words and ideas matter." They see the library as "an eco building in the park"- green features include:
-carefully controlled natural lighting sufficient for reading during 70% of the library's open hours;
-natural cooling and warming of incoming air through a thermal labyrinth constructed in the basement walls around the massive underground book storage (room for ten million volumes down there)
-low velocity air supply through raised floors. ::Archiweb.cz
This building makes me laugh because it looks ridiculous, but I don't think I mean that in a bad way, honestly.
It looks like the blob.
Avant garde architecture might look okay, but a preponderance of these places look dated in a few years. Better to stick with classical architecture that doesn't risk being called an eyesore in a decade.
And I can't see why any treehugger would want to read in dead tree format if they don't have to. I realize that libraries make dead trees more efficiently used, but you still have to kill the trees and put them in a building that's unoccupied 1/3 of the time.
Looks like a slime jelly monster is advancing on the city. Hehe, I'd be completely amused to have something like in my city! But are they sure about the yellow and violet color?
I think you should be more unkind about it , did someone sneeze?
I can't begin to imagine how this qualifies as "green". I dread to think of the embedded carbon footprint of constructing this. Why not just build the bunker (which is the effective part of the building) , & build a grassed mound on top instead of the "silly hat". Perhaps even plant a forest on top? much nicer
that building looks ridiculous, you cant help but look at it and laugh, which is wonderful! little kids are going to love it, theyre going to want to go to the weird booger building all the time and theyll be r-e-a-d-i-n-g. the funny looking library will be the drawing point to children learning to love books. i want to hug the architects. the illustration of the inside looks quite cozy too.
Geez, people open your minds! Just because it doesn't conform to YOUR idea of what a building should look like...
I love a diversity of style, particularly if it's eco-friendly.
If people aren't reading "dead trees" then what are they doing. Something with electricity loads far higher than a reading lamp.
Reading also preserves knowledge, and spawns creativity. TV does not. I am also skeptical about electronic data storage, because your hard drive is a lot more likely to erase its contents than a book.
Also, look around the room you are typing in. Odds are that you are surrounded by dead trees of some kind or another. Floor. Desk. Furniture. Doors. Shelves. Architectural features.
Unless you have all plastic (including synthetic carpets) things, in which case you are just using organisms that have been dead for millions of years and won't grow back. Great.
Oh my: I have never seen anything so ugly. What are they thinking. We all want our children to read more. I know I do, but I'm not so sure I woud take my child there.
Oh my: I have never seen anything so ugly. What are they thinking. We all want our children to read more. I know I do, but I'm not so sure I woud take my child there.
Oh my! This is the future Learning Center of the EPFL (in Lausanne, Switzerland) gone mad! If you want to have a look:
http://learningcenter.epfl.ch/page29889-en.html
I hope they won't keep those colours!
But anyone who wants to build a library has my vote.
KILL IT!
I like it, although I think 10 times the size would be perfect.
I like it, although I think 10 times the size would be perfect.