CENTRAL LIBRARY IN PÄRNU, ESTONIA
Competition entry, 1st prize
Project: 1999
Location: Between the central square of Pärnu, small summer resort, and attractive remains of the bastion belt.
Typology: Library, multifunctional conference rooms, exhibition spaces, public Internet-café.
The central square was designed during the post-war Stalinist period to replace the ruins of the bombed medieval city centre. New library adds activity and cultural intensities to the existing bleak space, breaking with its positioning square's rigid axial symmetry. The library is bounded by different environments from each direction. The facade of the building is completely clad with clear glass. So the local squares are created in all sides of the building, which are characterised by the placement of the library's functions. Special attention is focused to the functional aspects and interior planning, creating a non-hierarchical arrangement of space. The views unfolding in the levels as well as ramps intersecting into the building create coherent space, which extends through the library from the central square to the Baroque moat.
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