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. 

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.

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.

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.

Plans

Material map

Terracotta book-screen facade concept

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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