a9a rchitects has wrapped the façade of a bookstore with a transparent glass curtain wall in Sichuan Province, China. 

Named Fang Suo - Fang Ting Bookstore, the 860-square-metre building is located in OCT O'PARK commercial district, close to Hutaoli. Looking from the street that is close to water, the external facade is clad in a transparent glass curtain wall, which marks the building. 

Image © Arch-Exist Photography - He Zhenhuan

Read the full project narrative with the architects' own words. The arc's external wall is half covered with a white metal curtain. Combined with the gradual glass film of the lower half, a delicate balance is achieved between the virtual and the real without affecting the internal lighting. Approaching the outside seating area, a "Book of Longing" opens a mottled brick entrance.

Façade detail. Image © Arch-Exist Photography - He Zhenhuan

On the first floor, four movable horseshoe platform tables are divided into the main use areas: on the left side of the entrance is the indoor coffee seat area; in the center, the main space is divided into the audio-visual black glue area, the life aesthetics area and the audio-visual book area with the platform table as the core. The platform table can change the field scope according to the use demand, which seems to have the magnetic attraction and independent existence.

The suspended ceiling on the first floor of the bookstore combines with the cylindrical type, which is composed of several concentric circles of different sizes. The seemingly random connection shape gives people the rotating association of retro tapes.

Walking through the main space, the stair area pointing to the second floor enlarges the width of the original stair and adds a platform area as the transition space of the two floors. The display surface of the best-selling leaderboards is designed as a flipped shelf in the shape of a piano hammering mallet. Combined with the display area of the platform, people are guided to move to the middle reading stair space.

Mottled brick entrance

A staircase reading space is added by using the height of the building and widening the width of the original staircase. The low height formed by the mezzanine and the surrounding book wall bring the warm feeling of being surrounded by knowledge.

Compared with the first level, the second level focuses on art and reading. With the streamline formed by magnetic induction lines, the main use areas are divided into two-layer circular book area, horseshoe platform desk book area, changeable speech area, outdoor coffee area, backstage area where employees can rest and work. According to the actual situation, the desk area of the platform can be transformed into a speech area to increase the use of space.

Ceiling for platform table on the first floor

Using the collision between the circular wall and the platform table, the office of the staff is opened up. Originally, the regular wall was broken by a group of platform tables, and the implication of which is also our unconventional design concept. It not only combines the area of internal staff with the area used by external guests, but also increases the interest of the space.

Cashier background wall on the first floor

Combined with the form of the building itself and the design concept of "electromagnetic cloud", a two-layer circular bookcase is designed near the extension and the central area, which first meets the basic requirements of the bookstore, and then extends with the design elements, giving a feeling of being surrounded by a sea of books.

The platform table in the two-tier space can change the field range according to the moving position of the use demand, which seems to have mutual attraction and independent existence.

Stairs on the first floor

Ceiling of the second floor column

First floor plan

Second floor plan

Project facts

Project name: Fang Suo - Fang Ting Bookstore

Design firm: a9a rchitects

Project location: O'PARK Commercial District of Overseas Chinese Town, Chengdu City, Sichuan Province, China

Site area: 1200 Square Meters

Building area: 860 Square Meters

Clients: Sichuan Fangsuo Cultural Creativity Co., Ltd.

Project type: Cultural Building – Bookstore

Design category: Interior / Architectural renovation

Chief designer: Jio Li

Design team: Levis Li, Ariel Shen

All images © HereSpace - He Chuan unless otherwise stated. 

All drawings © a9a rchitects.

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bookstore built