Library lesson. The most beautiful and unusual libraries in the world. Alternative Libraries Amazing Libraries

Kansas City Central Library, Missouri, USA

The library building is one of the most prominent landmarks of the city. Election by the Board of Trustees (and it was he who participated in the construction of the building) this or that book on the shelfreflects the diversity of literary genres represented in the public book depository.

Geisel Library at the University of California, San Diego, USA

The most recognizable building on campus, Built in 1970 by William Pereira, it is named in honor of Audrey and Theodor Seuss Geisel, who generously contributed to the library's collection. The main one of 6 book depositories and A symbol of the University of California, Geisel boasts an impressive collection of books on the arts, sciences and humanities.

National Library of the Republic of Belarus, Minsk, Belarus

The pride of Minsk is the latest modern library of enormous size. The building is a rhombicuboctahedron more than 70 meters high. One of the largest in the world, the library includes a whole complex of buildings. His project was developed in the late 80s and in 1989 won an all-Union competition. However, it was possible to bring it to life only after more than 15 years. Construction took place from 2002 to 2005. The lighting of the building is unusual - a giant multi-color screen turns on every day at sunset and works until midnight. The design and patterns on it are constantly changing.

Peckham Library, London, England

This striking building is shaped like an inverted "L" and is supported by thin steel pillars. The building was designed by Alsop and Störmer, who won the prestigious architectural prize Stirling Prize in 2000. Inside the building, in addition to the main hall, there are numerous conference rooms, children's and Afro-Caribbean sections. When developing the project, the creators tried to take a different look at the plan for the future structure and created reading rooms in the basement. An information room and media center were formed on the ground floor.

Seattle Central Library, Washington, USA

Opened in 2004, the library instantly became a popular destination for the city's intellectuals. Built according to the design of Rem Koolhaas and Josiah Prince-Ramus, the institution was visited by more than 2 million people in its first year of existence. The library houses more than 1.45 million books and other materials. The building is equipped with underground parking for 143 cars and a computer room for more than 400 computers. The library has a unique, striking appearance that earned it 108th place on the list of America's 150 Favorite Buildings.

Text: Elizaveta Churilina

What associations do you have with the word library? Maybe you imagine boring rooms with dusty shelves filled with time-worn books. Or you imagine huge archival racks storing tons of documents and folders. Whatever picture your imagination draws, it is unlikely that it will even remotely remind you of the book depositories that we are going to talk about today in our article.

This selection will change your mind, and you will forever change your idea of ​​how rare and unique books are stored. So, are you ready to find out where the most unusual libraries in the world are located?

Trinity College Library

This literary treasure trove, located in Dublin, is one of the most beautiful and unusual libraries in the world, and is the permanent home to the famous illustrated Book of Kells, created in 800 by Irish monks. The facility is located in five buildings, four of which belong to Trinity College and one to St. James's Hospital. The main hall of the Old Library, called the Long Room, stretches 65 meters. It was built between 1712 and 1732 and today houses more than 200,000 of the oldest literary works.

The Long Room was originally an open gallery with a flat ceiling, with volumes placed only on the ground floor shelves. But at the beginning of the 19th century, the library received the right to store within its walls a copy of every book published in Ireland and Great Britain, and the shelves became insufficient. In 1860, it was decided to expand the book depository and install an upper gallery in it, which required raising the ceiling by several meters and transforming its flat shape into a vaulted one.

The Austrian National Library, located in Vienna, is the largest book depository in Austria, with more than 7.4 million books and 180,000 papyri in its diverse collections, the oldest of which date back to the 15th century BC. e. Founded by the royal Habsburg dynasty, it was originally called the “Imperial Library”, but in 1920 it acquired its modern name.

The library complex includes 4 museums, as well as numerous collections and archives. The main mission of the repository is to collect and archive all publications published in Austria, including electronic media publications.

A distinctive feature of this building was its original decoration: the walls and ceilings here are painted with frescoes, and the building itself is decorated with numerous sculptures. That is why this library is considered one of the most beautiful in the world.

Library of Congress

Another beautiful book depository is located in the US capital - Washington. It was founded in 1800 after President John Adams signed the act of moving the nation's capital from Philadelphia to Washington. Then the head of state set out to create an unusual library that could only be used by a special group of dedicated people from the government. Today, the doors of the repository are open to everyone over 16 years of age, but some of its archives are still classified as “secret” and are not accessible to ordinary people.

The Library of Congress is considered the largest in the world, housing millions of books, manuscripts, records, photographs and maps. The most valuable library copy was the first printed edition of the US Declaration of Independence (1776). This oldest federal cultural institution in America is also a congressional research center. US law requires any publication issued in the country to have an additional copy designated for filing in the Congressional Depository.

Our list of interesting libraries in the world also included the National Book Depository of France, located in Paris. This literary treasury, which has royal origins, was founded in 1368 in the Louvre Palace by King Charles V. But in 1996, the repository received a new home in a complex of buildings consisting of four towers, built in the shape of an open book.

The collection of the unusual library is unique and has no analogues in the world. It contains 14 million books, printed documents, manuscripts, photographs, maps and plans, as well as ancient coins, medals and decorative elements. Here you can also view audio and video documentation and explore multimedia exhibits.

At the Bibliothèque Nationale de France, visitors can find comprehensive, extensive information, be it scientific or artistic. Every year, thanks to donations and contributions, the repository's collection is replenished with 150 thousand new documents.

Stuttgart City Library

One of the best libraries in Germany is located in Stuttgart. The external architecture of the building, which is an ordinary cube, is quite simple and is unlikely to arouse interest, but its internal design is a hymn to modernity and innovation. Built in 2011, the book depository is located on 9 floors, each of which is dedicated to a different topic, such as art or children's literature.

Here you won't find traditional reading rooms with creaky furniture, but you will be pleasantly surprised by futuristic sofas with cushions. Well, specially equipped cabins for using the Internet and listening to music only complement the innovative ambience of the room.

The unusual design inside the building is intended not so much to amaze the imagination as to draw the attention of visitors exclusively to the books. Nevertheless, professional publications deservedly appreciated the architecture of the Stuttgart city depository and included it in the list of the 25 most beautiful libraries in the world.

In September 2012, Queen Elizabeth II announced the official opening of the new library of the University of Aberdeen in Scotland. An unusual building with a total area of ​​15,500 sq. meters became the center of educational and research activities of university students. During the first year of operation, more than 700 thousand visitors visited the institution. About 250 thousand volumes and manuscripts are stored here, there is a reading room for 1,200 people, and there is also an exhibition gallery where exhibitions and seminars are often held.

The unusual modern architecture of the building deserves special attention: its facade is a combination of glass and plastic white lines, and the center of the interior is the futuristic atrium, spread over 8 tiers of the building. Thanks to its design, this library has rightfully earned the status of one of the most unusual and beautiful in the world.

Bodleian Library

The Bodleian Library, located in Oxford, is one of the oldest in Europe and the second largest in Britain, housing more than 11 million books and documents. It is here that copies of all publications published in England and Ireland are received. The beautiful book depository occupies five buildings and also has several branches in colleges and universities across the country. It is noteworthy that it is not possible to take the book outside the building: visitors can study copies only in special reading rooms.

The Bodleian Library was built back in the 14th century and has gone through several redevelopments and expansions. Its hallmark is the unusual Radcliffe Rotunda, where medical and scientific literature is mostly stored. Previously, the rules of the institution prohibited visitors from making photocopies of books, but today the requirements have been relaxed, and now everyone has the opportunity to make copies of copies published after 1900.

One of the most beautiful libraries in the world is located at the University of Coimbra in Portugal. The vault was built in the 18th century during the reign of the Portuguese King João V and named after him. The structure consists of three halls separated by decorated arches. The best Portuguese artists worked on the unusual decoration of this literary treasury, decorating the ceilings and walls of the building with paintings in the Baroque style.

It houses more than 250 thousand volumes devoted to medicine, geography, history, philosophy, canon law and theology. This is a true national monument of unique historical value for the state, which has become one of the most beautiful attractions in Portugal.

Royal Library

This national library of Denmark, located in Copenhagen, is also part of the capital's main university. The unusual vault came to life in 1648 thanks to the monarch Frederick III, and today it is considered the largest in the Scandinavian countries. This place has great historical value: after all, within its walls there are numerous publications published since the beginning of the 17th century.

The building itself is presented in the form of two cubes made of glass and black marble, which are cut through by a glass quadrangle. The new building is connected to the old library from 1906 by three passages. Inside, the vault is a modern, wave-shaped atrium spread over 8 floors. Separately, it is worth noting the entrance to the reading room, which is decorated with a unique fresco measuring 210 square meters. meters. Due to its color and unusual shape, the Royal Book Depository was called the “Black Diamond”.

The royal district of the Spanish city of San Lorenzo de El Escorial, located 45 km from Madrid, is the historical residence of the Spanish king. It is here that the unusual El Escorial library is located, which is considered one of the largest in the world. The length of the main hall of the vault is 54 meters and its height is 10 meters. Here, on beautiful carved shelves, more than 40 thousand volumes are stored, among which you can find the most valuable manuscripts, such as the Golden Gospel of Henry III.

The Escorial book depository also contains Arabic manuscripts, historical and cartographic documents. The vaulted ceilings and walls of the structure are decorated with beautiful frescoes that depict the 7 types of liberal arts: rhetoric, dialectics, music, grammar, arithmetic, geometry and astronomy.

National Library of St. The brand is located in a Renaissance building in Venice, Italy. This is one of the first state repositories to survive to this day, housing the greatest collection of classical texts and ancient manuscripts.

The building is richly decorated with sculptures, columns and arches, and the interior of the building is decorated with frescoes and paintings, which were worked by great Italian artists. Such decoration makes this literary treasury one of the most beautiful and unusual in the world. The repository contains more than a million copies of printed publications, 13 thousand manuscripts and about 24 thousand editions dating back to the 16th century. Real historical treasures are kept here: the will of Marco Polo, the original notes of Francesco Cavalli, the codes of the Gonzaga family and much more.

Library Clementium

The Clementium is a historic complex of buildings in Prague, home to one of the most beautiful libraries in the world. Built in 1722, the storage facility is designed in the Baroque style, and today its area is more than 20 thousand square meters. meters. This unusual structure concentrated about 22 thousand rare books of great historical value.

The decoration of Clementium is not just a beautiful interior, but real art. Frescoed ceilings, antique furniture, ornate golden fences and valuable publications on carved shelves - all this awaits visitors to one of the most interesting libraries in the world.

The most futuristic book depository in the world was founded in 2011 in the city of Stavanger, located on the west coast of Norway. The building's unique roof geometry is based on 27 wooden arches made from recycled lumber. There is a comfortable reading corner in the center of each arch.

During the construction of the modern building, mainly wood was used, so the structure meets the highest environmental requirements. The Vennesla Library has repeatedly won architectural competitions both in Norway and abroad.

Portuguese Royal Library

The Royal Portuguese Library, located in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, ranks 4th in the list of the most beautiful book depositories in the world. The unusual structure greets its visitors with a spiky facade with high windows and sculptures with bas-reliefs. And inside the building you will find a Gothic interior combined with a Renaissance style. The vault's reading room is stunning with its huge, beautiful chandelier, large stained-glass window ceiling, and intricate mosaic floor.

This interesting library contains valuable literary materials, including more than 350 thousand volumes and rare books from the 16th to 18th centuries. Moreover, all copies are available in electronic versions. Thousands of copies of publications officially published in Portugal are received here every year.

This largest book depository in the Australian state of Victoria is located in Melbourne. The library was founded in 1856, and its first collection consisted of about 4,000 volumes. Today, the building covers an entire block and has several reading rooms, and its storage facilities contain more than 1.5 million copies of books. The famous diaries of Captain Cook are kept here, as well as the records of Melbourne's founding fathers - John Pascoe Fawkner and John Batman.

The inside of the building is decorated with beautiful carved staircases and carpets, as well as a miniature art gallery. Outside there is a green park where you can admire unique sculptural monuments. The State Library of Victoria can rightfully be considered one of the most unusual book depositories in the world.

Conclusion

The most unusual libraries in the world have long become not only havens of great knowledge, but also vibrant, beautiful attractions that any knowledgeable traveler aspires to visit. And visiting such repositories can forever change your opinion about what real libraries should look like.

Related posts:

More recently, in 2017, it immediately became a point of attraction for millions of people from all over the world. Which, of course, is not surprising - the Binhai Library can rightfully be called a unique work of modern architecture.

The building has a spherical shape, from the inside it is filled to the ceiling with wavy, overlapping bookshelves. The library's five floors include a variety of reading rooms, lounge areas, offices, and even a terrace for entertaining in warm weather. The storage facilities can accommodate more than one million books. The huge ball of the central hall of the library is softly illuminated at night, as if calling on the citizens and guests of Tianjin not to forget about the fascinating world of books.

Thionville, France.

This media library could form the basis of future models for urban spaces. The authors of the project, bureau Dominique coulon & associations, brought to life the idea of ​​​​creating a space in which visitors become both participants and actors. The building housed not only traditional book rooms, but also media areas, exhibition spaces, music studios, and a cafe. A variety of activities creates a continuous dynamics of space. In addition, the media library has new models of spaces - the so-called “bubbles”, which house more intimate areas - language classrooms, places for games, rooms for reading aloud, etc. They are like cocoons in which you can feel more private.

The façade of the building curves like a ribbon, and there is a terrace on the roof, accessed by a green ramp. On the terrace, visitors have the opportunity not only to read or chat, but also to take a nap and even have a picnic.

San Diego, USA.

This brutalist constructivist glass and concrete "Tree of Knowledge" was built in the 1970s and designed by William Pereiro. The image turned out to be very outstanding and recognizable, so the library immediately became the emblem of the University of California. The eight-story building contains several million volumes of scientific books, as well as spaces for study and creativity.

Also noteworthy is the entrance area of ​​the library, designed by conceptual artist John Baldessari. The installation features images of students above stacks of books. On top of the entrance doors there is an inscription: “Read/Write/Think/Dream.” When the doors slide apart, their multi-colored glass joins together, creating original color effects.

Medellin, Colombia.

The buildings, built in 2007 according to the design of the architect Giancarlo Mazzanti, are located on the top of the mountain. The three megalith buildings look like either an alien base or Stonehenge... These three “granites of science,” in addition to reading rooms and book depositories, housed cultural centers and modern interactive systems. You can get to the library in a rather unusual way - by cable car. The construction of such a modern and unique complex marked the beginning of the transformation of the city of Medellin, which back in the early 2000s was considered one of the most dangerous in Colombia.

Liyuan, China.

The architects of the Li Xiaodong Atelier bureau created an amazing space in the village of Huairou in 2011, harmoniously blending into the natural environment and emphasizing unity with it. The library's facade is decorated with twigs from trees that local residents collect from the surrounding area and use as fuel, and the new use of such an eco-friendly material as cladding was an excellent solution.

The interior space of Liyuan Library is attractive and cozy: several levels without tables and chairs, bookshelves, steps - everything speaks of the hilly area in which the library is built. The building is completely glazed, and this provides a lot of much-needed natural light (there is no electricity in the library), as well as visual space, despite the very small area.

Berlin, Germany.

The library opened its doors in September 2005 and became an addition to the existing building of the humanities institute, built in the 1970s. The author of the project called his creation “the brain of Berlin” because of its curved galleries and stairs, reminiscent of the convolutions of the human brain.

The library's five floors are wrapped in glazed aluminum panels and supported by a steel radial frame. The building has natural ventilation - the supply of fresh air is controlled by a computer, and the heating system uses heat from heated surfaces. The translucent inner membrane has daylight filters. Inside the library, its own favorable microclimate is created, which helps preserve the book collections and, of course, the health of readers.

Vienna, Austria.

She designed the futuristic building and her unique style is immediately noticeable: flexible lines, smooth shapes and flowing transitions from one space to another. Having opened its doors in 2013, the library became not only the dominant feature of the campus, but also a new architectural center of attraction for tourists.

The LLC building consists of two volumes with contrasting facades clad in fiber-reinforced concrete. In the upper block, black, with a dynamic console, there is a library, the highlight of which is a reading room with a huge window. The lower part of the building is separated from the upper by a continuous glazed strip and covered with light-colored panels. Inside there are spaces for various activities, halls for celebrations, a career center for graduates, a bookstore and much more. The library is equipped with the latest technology, and in good weather students can even study outside.

Geelong, Australia.

The authors of the project, the ARM Architecture bureau, tried to follow three main ideas: firstly, it was necessary to pay tribute to the surrounding historical buildings that have the status of cultural heritage sites and create a building that would not be radically out of context, secondly, to design a spectacular and a modern space that meets the requirements not only of today, but also of tomorrow, and thirdly, to develop an organic structure that is in harmony with the natural environment. Thus, a unique spherical structure was born, reminiscent of a cave with stalactites. The glazed wall reflects the nearby park area and thus the building visually merges with nature. On the eight floors of the library, in addition to library premises, there are cafes, exhibition spaces and an archive.

New York, USA.

The smallest libraries in the world appeared in 2013 on the streets of New York - they can only accommodate one reader and about 40 books. The goal of the social experiment of the city hall and the bright yellow structures is to give residents the opportunity to take a break from the frantic pace of life in the metropolis, to regain interest in paper books and read them for free. The principle of operation is that anyone can borrow a book for a few days or exchange it for another. Restocking books on shelves is welcome, but vandalism or theft is not. Ten small LIttle Free Library pavilions were designed by different designers, using recycled materials, and installed in different locations in Manhattan.

Note that the idea of ​​little free libraries has spread throughout the world. They have appeared in converted telephone booths, bus stops and even on public transport.

Nice, France.

The world's first "inhabited sculpture", created in 2002, is one of the buildings of the Louis Nucer library. The authors of the idea, Yves Bayard and Francis Chapu, designed a unique head, which instantly became one of the landmarks of Nice.

Unfortunately, ordinary visitors do not have access to the “brain” - the statue houses the administration premises of the library, located in a neighboring building with more traditional architecture.

The article was prepared by Natalya Ledeneva for the website
based on materials: wikipedia.org, flickr.com, arch2o.com and other open sources

Of the many articles about libraries around the world, I chose this one because it contains PLANS for building some of them, and I could not find information that these wonderful plans were realized. Don't know. And I really want to know. Therefore, if you know, if you have seen it, please tell us!

Amazing thing! Despite the Internet in every home and tens of millions of e-books sold around the world every year, there are still people who go to the library!
Moreover, more and more library buildings are being built for these retrogrades, some of which become real masterpieces of architecture!

1. Library Resort
Some people, even on vacation, cannot part with books. It is for them that a hotel called The Library Resort, recently opened in Thailand, was created. Its main feature is a decent library, built right next to the pool. You lie on a sun lounger under the palm trees, read a book, and from time to time you get up to pick up a new book or swim in the warm water. Beauty!

2. Bookshelf
When you first see the Kansas Public Library in a photo, you wouldn't immediately be able to tell that it's a building. The facade, known as the Bookshelf, consists of 8-meter spines. They cover one of the walls of the library. There are 22 “books” in total. They have been selected to reflect a wide range of reading backgrounds. Kansas readers were asked to choose the books they wanted to see as front covers.

3. Library-sink
But the National Library of Kazakhstan, currently under construction in the capital of this state - Astana, looks more like a flying saucer or the shell of some sea mollusk. The choice of the building's shape is, of course, not accidental. Indeed, in this option, the sun will be able to illuminate the rooms inside the library as long and brightly as possible.

4. Library in the metro
Many residents of the largest megacities on Earth spend a huge amount of time underground every day, in the subway. And one of the best ways to kill time there is reading. It is for such underground book lovers that there is a library in the New York subway at the 50th street station, where you can find a book to read on the way to work and home.

5. Infinite library
The Stockholm Public Library project, designed by architect Olivier Charles, involves creating an “endless” wall of books. In the central atrium of this library there will be a huge wall with shelves filled with books. Visitors will be able to walk through the galleries installed along this wall and take the books they need or like. And to increase the infinity effect, mirrors will be installed on the sides of this wall.

6. Library in the form of huge boulders
The public library is located in Santo Domingo, Colombia. The architectural design of the master Giancarlo Mazzanti is truly impressive at first glance. At first it seems that these are just three huge boulders. The building is deliberately located on the top of a hill, among vegetation, which gives it a more natural outline.

7. Beer crate library
Beer and books usually have little in common. Unless, of course, this is a book with jokes about beer. But in one of the districts of Magdeburg they created a public street library, built from old beer crates.

8. Royal Danish Library in Copenhagen
This library is the national library of Denmark and is the largest library in Scandinavia. The storage facilities of this library contain a huge number of historically valuable publications: there are all copies of books printed in Denmark since the 17th century. There is even the first book printed in Denmark back in 1482. More details about this library here http://bigpicture.ru/?p=184661

9. Book Mountain
It’s not for nothing that a large book is called a “block.” In the Dutch town of Spijkenisse they are planning to build a library in the form of a mountain consisting of just such “blocks”.

10. Figvam
In general, in Holland, unusual libraries seem to be very popular. Let me introduce you to one more of them. It is located in the city of Delft, and no longer looks like a mountain, like the library from Spijkenisse, but like a fig, beloved by the characters of the cartoon “Three from Prostokvashino”.

11. National Library of Belarus
The new building of the National Library of the Republic of Belarus, which opened its doors in June 2006, was named one of the most amazing and ugliest buildings in the world. The unusualness of the building lies in its original shape, which is a complex geometric figure - a rhombicuboctahedron (a three-dimensional figure of 18 squares and 18 triangles). In addition, the library is covered with a special finish - color LEDs, thanks to which the colors and patterns on the building change every second at night.

12. Bishan Public Library
The Bishan Public Library is located in Singapore. The library looks stylish and modern not only from the outside, but also from the inside. There are specially designated places for discussing thoughts about a particular book read. These rooms are decorated with colorful, bright colored glass, which creates a pleasant atmosphere and makes the interior glow with all the colors of the rainbow. The roof is also glass, which increases the flow of light into the building and illuminates it from the inside.

13. New National Library of the Czech Republic
The library is due to open in 2011 and will be one of the most modern libraries in the world. The architectural ensemble of this building consists of three objects of a shape that allows minimizing the volume and increasing the view of the trees surrounding the building.