The Amazing House of Bookshelves

by Stephen J. Gertz

The wooden structure at center appears to be a standard residence.

But step inside and it is anything but standard.

The client, living in Moriguchi, Osaka, Japan, owned an extensive collection of books centering upon Islamic history. He wanted a combination private residence-study with maximum capacity for storage and exhibition of his library.  So, in 2006, the Kazuya Morita Architecture Studio of Kyoto designed the Shelf Pod, in essence a house of bookshelves with a bed and bathroom.

Pinch me. Am I dreaming?

"In order to satisfy this demand effectively, we designed a lattice structure made from 25mm thick laminated pine-board which serve as book-shelves. The dimensions of each shelf are as follows: 360mm height, 300mm width and 300mm depth. All of the architectural elements in this space (stairs, windows, desks, chairs, etc) have been designed on the basis of this shelf scale, with the aim of achieving geometrical harmony which is comparable to Islamic Architecture. This innovative structural system affords not only large amount of book storage, but the possibility of flexible floor level which can be delivered from every height of bookshelf. Each space for different activity rise up helically, giving the impression of exploring a wooden jungle gym.

"The original image of this structure is derived from the Japanese woodcraft of Kumiko (lattice). The structural integrity against an earthquake is provided by a panel of plywood board nailed on the shelf. Initially, the horizontal resistant force guaranteed by the panels was examined in a real-scale model. Further to this, an analysis of the whole structure was performed in order to determine the placement of the windows and panels. The inter-locking laminated pine-board was manufactured precisely in advance and assembled on-site. Similarly, the pyramid-shaped roof was assembled on-site, from 12 pieces of prefabricated wooden roof panel. The completed roof has a thickness of only 230mm and sensitively covers the whole space like the dome of a Mosque.

"In addition to its unique structure, the outer wall employs the construction techniques of a traditional Japanese storehouse Dozou. The bamboo net wall foundation layer was attached to the lattice structure and the clay and straw mixture was applied to the foundation by the trowel. Then the red cedar panels forms exterior wall. The interior clay wall was finished with white plaster. These techniques are in accordance with urban fireproofing specifications, as well as maintaining a suitably humid environment for the storage of books."

In a bathroom flush with bookshelves
you'd need Ex-Lax to get me out of there.

 Site : Moriguchi, JAPAN
Design : Kazuya Morita Architecture Studio / Kazuya Morita ,Issei Kawashima.
Structural Engineer : Mitsuda Structural Consultant.
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With thanks to Elmar Seibel of Ars Libri Ltd, who led me to Alex Johnson and his wonderful Bookshelf Blog, which led me to  the Kazuya Morita Architecture Studio.
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London Library Lightens Up

The London Library, 14 St. James Square.

(Image Courtesy Of The London Library Website.)

Remember the hedge maze in Stanley Kubrick's film The Shining? Acres of impenetrable green walls, artfully arranged to bedevil intrepid explorers determined to find the calm, cool center of a secret, secluded space. Each new corner promises one more step towards the goal, but more often that not results in yet another dead end. But even those dead ends have a certain beauty. Each is a quiet oasis among the leaves, often with a marble bench on which to rest and reflect before continuing the journey to the end of this botanic rainbow. Now imagine a library that over time became just like that labyrinth. Miles and miles of never ending bookshelves arranged with such baffling intricacy that finding a specific book is more challenging than getting to the center of a hedge maze. Actually there's no need to imagine it. Just pay a visit to the London Library at St. James Square.

The St. James Entrance To One Of Nearly A Dozen Levels Of Book Stacks

(Image Courtesy Of The London Library Website.)

The London Library bills itself as "a university library for people who are no longer at university." It is the largest independent lending library in the world, with over one million books and periodicals housed on some 15 miles of open-access shelves. Over 95% of the collection may be freely browsed, and 97% is available for loan. The central tenet of the library is that since "books are never entirely superseded, and therefore never redundant, the collections should not be weeded of material merely because it is old, idiosyncratic or unfashionable: except in the case of exact duplication, almost nothing has ever been discarded from the library's shelves." This has resulted in a library chock-full of books, ten floors of them and growing, with another half-mile of shelving required every three years. And all of this in a library that has been located in the same London townhouse on posh St. James Square since 1845.

Does This Look A Bit Confusing? Vintage Signage At The London Library.
(Photo Courtesy of Jake Tilson of Haworth Tompkins.)

The doors of the London Library opened on May 3, 1841 at Number 49 Pall Mall, the first floor of The Traveller's Club, with a mere 3,000 volumes. Its first location consisted of three rooms and a coal cellar. It was founded by historian, biographer, and world-class curmudgeon, Thomas Carlyle. He became disenchanted (to say the least) with the British Library's closed stacks and non-circulating collection. In a move that most of us could only dream of, Carlyle decided to found his own library, where open stacks could be perused at leisure, and if by serendipity the perfect volume was discovered, it could be borrowed for a few weeks.

Carlyle's London Library was for members only. Those wishing to enjoy the collection submitted their names to the librarian, who passed them along to a membership committee for consideration. Approved members paid an annual subscription fee. The library began with 500 members including Charles Dickens, William Makepeace Thackeray, and William Ewart Gladstone. In what was a portent of the shape of things to come, by 1845 the Pall Mall location was outgrown, and the London Library moved to its present St. James Square address.

A Section Of London Library's Book Stacks, Unchanged Since 1898.
(Image Courtesy Of The London Library Website.)

The St. James Square townhouse was originally rented, but was purchased outright in 1879. This allowed for a higgledy-piggledy, hodge-podge of additions over the years to accommodate its ever-growing collection. The building was entirely reconstructed in 1896-98, becoming one of the first steel-frame buildings in London. Major additions, accomplished by purchasing adjacent buildings and real estate, took place in 1913, 1931, 1995, and 2004. The library eventually snaked the width of an entire city block, through various buildings and extensions, from St James Square to Duke Street.

The Library Survived Bomb Damage In 1944.
(Image Courtesy Of The London Library Website.)

The result of over 160 years of expansion is a jumble of intertwined buildings and assorted extensions, assembled piecemeal and jammed into the property behind the library's genteel facade. Books are spread over nearly a dozen uneven, mismatched floors in rooms marked by hidden nooks, crannies, and alcoves, and linked together by narrow corridors, gloomy passageways, and clattering iron staircases. Members often rely on the institution's librarians not only for bibliographic advice, but also for simple directions. Now all of that is about to change.

The Main Reading Room Of The London Library.

(Image Courtesy Of The London Library Website.)

The London Library, a monument to its mid-nineteenth century founders, with iron grille and opaque glass floors, leather armchairs and leather-bound books, and a unique cataloging system devised in the late 1800's, is about to move into the 21st century. For the first time, an architect with a complete plan for the entire property is in the process of giving this great Victorian lady a makeover.

A Section Model Of The Remodeled London Library.
(Image Courtesy Of Haworth Tompkins.)

London-based architectural firm Haworth Tompkins has made it their business to reorganize this labyrinthine library so members might find a particular book without risking the fate of Jack Nicholson in Kubrick's hedge maze. The 25 million dollar remodeling project is one of the largest ever devised for a historic London building. Design and construction problems have been monumental. The library staff have insisted that the building remain open, and the entire collection accessible, throughout construction. Firm constraints were placed on the number of hours construction noise would be tolerated. (For example, 10 AM to Noon, and 2 PM to 4 PM are designated "quiet times" each day.)

The Library's Skylight Before The Face Lift.
(Image Courtesy Of The London Library Website.)

The logistics involved in working at a site surrounded by valuable books, and their very particular readers, are only half the battle. The Library's location, amidst an upper crust neighborhood full of luxury high rises, allows for only very limited access for dozens of workers and their machinery. The site has almost no storage space suitable for building materials. Additionally, all areas of the existing buildings must either remain accessible despite the on-going work, or have all volumes relocated before being closed off. Quite a tall order for those tasked with a tremendous transformation.

The Skylight Area Post-Op.
(Image Courtesy Of The London Library Website.)

The first two phases of the London library's face lift have been completed. (Two further stages are yet to come.) An all new reading room especially designed for the library's bound volumes of the London Times is up and running, complete with custom-made reading tables and movable shelving. A central skylight has been removed and replaced by a two story glass roofed reading room for the periodicals collection. The "Issue Hall" (what we on this side of the pond call a "circulation desk") and main reading room have been lightened and brightened through the removal of structures added as passageways to the book stacks. These walkways have been replaced by new elevators and ramps to provide wheelchair access. The Library's original Victorian main staircase remains unaltered, and the architect is determined to maintain the great lady's "bespoke grandeur."

The "Issue Hall" Circa 1935.
(Image Courtesy Of The London Library Website.)

All of which should mean members can locate volumes without getting lost in a labyrinth. But one challenge, albeit a charming one, remains. The London Library still uses its own idiosyncratic, arcane cataloging system (.pdf format) created by librarian Charles Hagberg Wright in 1894. Books are arranged by subject according to "shelf marks" (.pdf format) and alphabetically by either author or title within subject section. This is both wonderfully entertaining and incredibly baffling in turn. It leads to such gems (in the "F" section alone) as "Science-Miscellaneous: Falconry see Fowling," "History: Filibusters see Buccaneers, Privateers," and "Science-Miscellaneous: Farriery see Horseshoeing."

Fortunately, The Stacks Will Always Offer Plenty of Places To Get Lost In.
(Image Courtesy Of The London library Website.)

Surprisingly for such a tastefully traditional institution, the London library has an incredibly detailed and multilayered website. (Kudos to web designer Ned Campbell and the firm of Jones LaFuente.) It includes a complete guide to the shelf marks, a detailed history of the institution complete with historic images, and a much needed map of the library's various and sundry reading rooms and book stacks. All of which indicates a desire to help the intrepid reader navigate the maze. Thankfully this does not eliminate the possibility of blissfully meandering through the grand old collection, and intentionally getting lost in a wistful remembrance of libraries past.

Posted by Nancy Mattoon

New Swiss Library Will Run Like Clockwork

A Bird's Eye View Of The Rolex Learning Center.

(All Images Courtesy Of SANAA.)

Viewed from above it looks like a flat, wavy rectangle full of randomly placed holes-- and it's Swiss. A cheesy description, perhaps, but one that fits a glorious modernist library which opened on February 22, 2010 in the city of Lausanne. The Japanese architectural firm known as SANAA has created a single-story, slice-like structure so sublimely constructed it seems to float above the ground.

Lausanne's Floating Library.

The Rolex Learning Center for the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (EPFL) is a single fluid space that undulates like free-flowing waves over 20,000 square meters (just over 215,000 square feet) of inner city real estate. But the deliberately park-like structure makes a densely populated metropolitan area feel like the rolling hills and fertile valleys in the foothills of the nearby Alps. Almost entirely free of interior walls, long sweeping vistas seem to erase the distinction between indoors and outdoors. There is simply never ending space.

A Library Without Walls.

Light is brought in through the Swiss-cheese holes in the roof, and the pristine whiteness of the concrete surfaces creates a snowy plane, airy, bright, and infinite. The result is a communal space without fixed function. A softly curvy, feminine expanse without hierarchies or straight lines. A series of calm and silent connected spaces created to nurture collaboration, communication, and cooperation over competition. Library, offices, restaurants, and auditoriums are harmoniously linked between a cloud-like canopy above, and a floor that gently rises and falls like a living organism as it inhales and exhales. "Human movements are not linear like in a train, but curve in a more organic way," said architect Ryue Nishizawa, one-half of team SANAA, explaining his vision. "With straight lines we only create crossroads, but with curves we can create more diverse interactions."

Feminine Curves, No Straight Lines.

Not surprisingly, given the organic flavor of this delectable architectural dish, the other cook in SANAA's creative kitchen is Kayuyo Sejima, Japan's premiere female architect. She explains how the duo found the recipe to create a product both nourishing of creativity and pleasing to the eye: "We asked ourselves: what kind of space can a lot of people, doing different activities at the same time, enjoy being in? After we had the final shape, we used stairs and ramps from Lausanne and the Swiss landscape as precedents to learn how the gentle slopes can be used and enjoyed. We imagined that this type of open space might increase the possibility for new meetings or trigger new activities. In comparison to traditional study spaces, where corridors and classrooms are clearly separated, we hope that there will be many different ways to use the new space and that there will be more active interaction, which in turn will trigger new activities."

A Wavy Structure, Full of Holes.

The Rolex Learning Center is as innovative technologically as it is architecturally, befitting its function as an engineering and computer science library for one of the world's leading scientific universities. Highly energy efficient, the center uses almost entirely natural light, with carefully controlled fresh-air ventilation systems. High-quality double-glazed windows and ceiling and floor insulation help save energy. Engineers initially said the huge wavy structure, with 14 open "holes" in the ceiling to let in light, was unbuildable, as the height and load ratios suggested it could not hold its own weight.

Engineering Innovations Concealed By Surpassing Beauty.

The engineer's audacious solution to the support problem was to build the entire structure atop invisible, underground bridges. The unseen groundwork holding up this wood, steel, and glass landscape is the most ingenious part of the building. Laser-cut concrete forms positioned using GPS technology create two concrete shells held aloft by fifteen arches, which are anchored to 70 underground cables. Architecture that appears seamless is actually bolstered by "the flattest concrete arches ever built." A tailor-made, cleverly concealed, and incredibly flattering foundation garment is the unseen element without which this building's haute couture perfection would collapse.

An Organic Structure, As Natural As The Landscape.

The Rolex Learning Center can accommodate 860 students, and has office space for over 100 EPFL employees. A multimedia section gives access to 10,000 online journals and 17,000 e-books, while 10 teaching area "bubbles" may be used for seminars, group work, and meetings. The Rolex Forum, an amphitheater with a 310 square-meter stage, may be used for larger events. Restaurants, cafes and outdoor patios complete the RLC, as it is known on campus. The building is open from 7 am to midnight every day. "It's very audacious, but that was the aim. We needed to invent new spaces," explained EPFL President Patrick Aebischer. "We want to become one of the best institutes of technology in the world, so we needed this kind of flagship building." On opening day, one onlooker remarked that students might be intimidated by the structure's sheer beauty: "The risk is that they feel it's like a cathedral. It’s so magical it will take time to get used to it."

Posted by Nancy Mattoon

Lowenbrau Goes Highbrow At Beer Carton Library

Let it be Lowenbrau at the library? Residents of Magdeburg, Germany wanted a library in their economically decimated downtown, so they built one themselves. And made it out 1,000 recycled beer cartons. The project began in response to the closing of the neighborhood's branch library. Faced with high unemployment and an 80% vacancy rate for central city real estate, the community needed a gathering place to maintain civic pride. The pop-up beer carton library was created with the help of a tiny Leipzig firm KARO Architekten. It survived for only two days, but the citizens remained inspired.

Downtown dwellers continued to collect donated books, and stored them in one of all too many abandoned storefronts. The makeshift collection eventually held 20,000 volumes. Fundraisers were held, and grant applications submitted. Ultimately a government grant for a permanent library came Magdeburg's way.

The citizens of Magdeburg showed an admirable loyalty to both the architectural firm that built with beer cartons, and to creative recycling: the commission for the permanent library was given to KARO, and the building was made with modernist cast concrete blocks salvaged from the facade of an abandoned warehouse.

The permanent structure boasts a unusual open-air design, with communal space dedicated to an outdoor theatre which hosts school plays, poetry slams, public readings, and live music. The populist spirit of the original beer carton library is retained in the library's liberal lending policies: no library cards, no late fees, and no limits on loans. Magdeburg calls this a "Library of Confidence." The book collection is available 24 hours a day, and users are encouraged to replace each borrowed book with a new donation. (More recycling.) The staff is made up entirely of volunteers. And readers feel free to relax with a book and a bottle of--you guessed it--beer.

Photos by Anja Schalmann.

Posted by Nancy Mattoon