The newly opened libraries are no longer the places with rows of beautiful bookshelves. They offer their patrons tons of other media, a space for discussion, and an opportunity to learn new skills.
Take a look at the futuristic public library in Thionville, a city of 40 thousand inhabitants in the Moselle department, in northeastern France.
The building was opened in 2016. It’s called Puzzle – Mediathèque de Thionville and is located at 68 Boulevard Foch.
This space is exploding with creativity and is full of fresh design ideas.
Let’s start with the floor. The grass is almost everywhere, inviting you to rest and spend some time reading, watching, or studying. There are lots of hidden rooms and alleys. Each one may serve as a quiet reading space. And there are reading bubbles and nooks everywhere!
The library was designed by Dominique Coulon and Associates, an architecture agency from Strasbourg. The creators’ ambition was to create the project that would become a new model for media libraries.
The idea is built around the concept of “a third place” – a place where patrons become actors in their own condition.
The best description of what this new public space is about was given by Diana Budds in the article for Fast Company:
The architects hope it becomes the city’s collective living room; to appeal to the different types of people who might use the library, they filled it with lots of unique moments, like rooms that have distinctive personalities, differing furniture, and plenty of outdoor spaces.
We’ve shared several examples of modern libraries before. It’s good to compare Mediathèque de Thionville with concepts created just months ago – and see how far the role of the library has evolved.
A futuristic public library in Thionville
Via Fast.Co.
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