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nArchitects wins Shanghai Library Competition envisioning a library as large house for all

China Architecture News - Aug 29, 2016 - 16:15   16536 views

nArchitects wins Shanghai Library Competition envisioning a library as large house for all

nArchitects has won the 1st prize in the 2016 International Young Architects Design Competition for the 110,000 square-meters Shanghai Library East Hall. The competition, held by the Shanghai Pudong New Area People’s Government, attracted over 200 entries. nArchitects’ winning entry, entitled “Library as Home”, envisions a library as a large house for all, with a rich variety of environments that Shanghai’s citizens could appropriate as their own.

As with the two distinct environments in China’s oldest library – Tian Yi Ge – the studio's scheme is characterized by open floors that connect library activities to nature and the city beyond, and compact floors that store a wide range of information formats and supporting functions. 

nArchitects wins Shanghai Library Competition envisioning a library as large house for all

The interiors presents multiple perspectives to see, discuss and work together. Image © Sonaar

These open and compact floors have been organized as four pairs, thereby simplifying the public’s understanding of this large building as a home for all.  As such, our design is inspired by the intimate connections between people, media and nature in libraries of the ancient world.

nArchitects wins Shanghai Library Competition envisioning a library as large house for all

The library includes open and flexible areas inside in a wooden platform. Image © Sonaar. 

Four open levels provide distinct library environments, each connected to exterior gardens at every level, as well as to each other, resulting in a continuous public interior.  Supported – both structurally and programmatically – by the compact levels below, the architects imagine these open floors to function as the city’s Patio, Living Room, Atelier and Study: a Library as Home.

nArchitects wins Shanghai Library Competition envisioning a library as large house for all

Section

The cylindrical form of the building results in a compact urban form, and a legible presence at the scale of the city. By extending a large street level and sub-surface plinth below the park level, we minimized the park level footprint, liberating a large new area of public space.

nArchitects wins Shanghai Library Competition envisioning a library as large house for all

Plans

nArchitects wins Shanghai Library Competition envisioning a library as large house for all

Material map

nArchitects wins Shanghai Library Competition envisioning a library as large house for all

Terracotta book-screen facade concept

nArchitects wins Shanghai Library Competition envisioning a library as large house for all

Model

Project Facts

Project name: Shanghai Library East Hall
Client: Pudong New Area Planning and Land Authority, Pudong New District Propaganda Department (Cultural Media Bureau), The Architectural Society of Shanghai China, “Time Architecture” magazine.
Project Location: Shanghai, China
Area: 110,000 m2
Program: Library + information resource center
Awards: 1st Prize, International Competition, 2016
nArchitects Design Team: Eric Bunge, Mimi Hoang (Principals), Albert Figueras (Associate, Project Architect), Wei Wen, Jessica Cheung, You Chia Lai, Thomas Heltzel, David Yukio Kagawa, Kyle Brill.
Renderings Credit: Sonaar
Video Credit: Playhou.se

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