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Seattle, Washington
Our aspirations wrapped up in books
The brand new Central Library in Seattle, designed by Rem Koolhaas and open since Memorial Day, is probably the most fun library ever built (take that, Peckham Library!). From the soft foam chairs to the folding plane walls to the big yellow escalators to the librarians with mobile headsets, everyone seems a lot happier than they probably should be.
This is the early afternoon filtered sun in the "Living Room", the best place to self check out your book, visit the shop, buy some coffee (covered drinks are allowed throughout the building), play chess, read some new or recommended fiction or sign up for a tour.
Vertical circulation is defined by a hard to miss yellow, from Fourth Avenue escalators lead up to the "Living Room", the "Mixing Chamber", the "Books Spiral" and the "Reading Room". It's easy to get up but hard to get down, a possibly fatal flaw in the building's design that lets visitors navigate by intuition but leaves them stranded in the Books Spiral on the way home.
Inside or outside the landscaping just doesn't stop. The landscaping, public art and graphics all contribute to a greater whole. As you visit the building you begin to realize how well it works, how everything is so well thought out, from materials to color to programming. It's the programming that clearly drives the whole project. On the architectural tour I was told stories of librarians, workers and visitors who disliked or were skeptical about the building, only to realize later how well the whole thing works. Even the volunteer tour guide admitted to initially getting lost in the building- despite those visual clues everywhere it still takes a while to get used to it.
Slightly out of the way is the meeting room floor, an all red adventure just down those loud red metal stairs. It has a striking resemblance to the giant walk through heart at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, although there are less informational signs or speakers that sound like pulsing blood.
When I had first seen the design for the Central Library a year or two ago all I had seen was the exterior. I was not especially impressed.
The magic (and there is magic) is on the inside, and after you see it you start to see the outside in a whole new light. The arbitrary folds start to seem less arbitrary, the shape starts to make sense. It alone is reason enough to visit Seattle and was a clear and unmistakable highlight of my trip, something which I guess starts to imply that the rest of the slideshow is all downhill from here. Something to look forward to I guess...
The Seattle building has gotten incredible press so far for good reason. There's nothing new or revolutionary about it, the building is just incredibly well thought out. It proves yet again that good design is always (eventually) worth the extra trouble.
One last picture, at least for now. This is on the Fourth Avenue level, where a found space underneath the auditorium and between the Children's Library and the ESL Library takes full advantage of a reflective floor.
