Library Buildings in a Changing Environment, 1st ed.

The buildings that house libraries should reflect their role, and the futures they help create. They should excite the eye as well as the mind. Libraries deserve great buildings (Brian Lang, The British Library, London).

In the age of the digital revolution, the role of the traditional library building is constantly being challenged. Libraries must now not only incorporate traditional elements associated with paper‐format resources, but also accommodate the additional space and resources demanded by new technology. New technology influences methods of working and therefore affects the way libraries are designed and used. With the electronic library on its way, the question must be asked – do physical libraries still have a role to play?

The evidence presented in this book seems to answer yes. Libraries face a number of significant changes involving publishing, information technology, telecommunications and the library’s role in society. As libraries consider how much and what kind of space they will need for the future, they must now also contemplate the influence and impact of electronic publishing. However, no new technology has ever totally replaced an earlier one – libraries will evolve to embrace new technology, organisational structure and user behaviour, but traditional formats, requiring suitable accommodation, will continue to play a significant role in library collections for the next several decades.

Library Buildings in a Changing Environment brings together a series of lectures presented at the Eleventh Seminar of the IFLA Section on Library Buildings and Equipment, held in Shanghai in 1999. Part of the IFLA Division on Management and Technology, the Section was formed to consider all matters relating to the design and construction of libraries around the world, and to establish better contacts between librarians and architects by promoting an exchange of experiences between the two. Originally the IFLA had a largely European and American focus but membership now covers 146 countries worldwide and this is reflected in the variety of speakers from around the globe, from Shanghai to New South Wales to London, via Warsaw and Paris.

A number of papers concentrate on the development of the public library infrastructure in the Far East, including China, Korea and Japan, while case studies focus on a variety of new and future library buildings, including the new British Library in London, Library 21 in Stuttgart and the Bibliotheque Nationale de France in Paris. Each case study is augmented by plans, diagrams and photographs, illustrating the planning and design process, and the final outcome. Every project is unique in terms of funding, the chosen site, the approach to design (usually constrained by site and budget), the facilities included and the ultimate physical outcome, but all strive for the same success in providing an inspirational environment, conducive to working and learning in.

Valuable insight is given into the planning of new libraries. The guiding principles for all new library projects are best summed up by Cheng Xiaolan of the Zhejiang Provincial Library, China – usefulness, flexibility, efficiency, economy, safety and artistic view. Essential in this time of change is flexibility of space to allow for changes in technology, and the “three same rule” is mentioned in a number of the studies. This rule, of same loading, same floor level, and same distance between columns, creates truly adaptable space, fully accessible to all users.

Although the book focuses primarily on new buildings, the case studies of the State Library of New South Wales and the National Library of Catalonia are of particular interest as they concern the renovation and augmentation of existing and historically important buildings. While new buildings, custom‐designed with flexible areas and space for future expansion, are seen as the ideal for the modern library, restrictions placed by funding, site, and similar factors, often mean that new‐build is not always an option. Other solutions must then be found and these often involve the refurbishment and enlargement of an existing building, which can be more challenging for the planner than “starting from scratch”. Presented by the Director, Dr Manuel Jorba, the paper on the Biblioteca de Catalunya highlights the many issues faced by those involved in such a project, for example the costs involved, the implications of carrying out work on such a culturally significant building and the impact on the library while work was undertaken. Surprisingly perhaps, but usefully, he also remarks on the problems and failings of the newly refurbished spaces, a useful guide for anyone planning a similar project in the future.

Library Buildings in a Changing Environment may not be everyone’s idea of a “good read” but it provides a valuable manual for those involved in the design of new library buildings and the reorganisation of old ones, librarian and architect alike, in order to successfully embrace the future.