Library of Communication
Studio; Re-Use
Gordon Avenue Library
Charlottesville, VA
The Library of Communication addition to the Gordon Avenue Library integrates art, music, and other outdoor events to create a new understanding for what libraries can be.
The new program melts the threshold between outdoor and indoor, deconstructing the language of typical Virginian brick libraries, and reworks the interior to create a seamless experience for library employees.
Situated between student, family, and elderly housing, the library provides for the wide variety of needs.
In contemporary times, libraries are learning to balance their importance as both research and social spaces, yet the existing formal language usually defies the latter. The project redevelops the interior spaces to be used more efficiently and takes advantage of the full footprint to focus more on the surrounding community.
The ground floor holds a program based on reflection and congregation, while the bottom floor holds spaces for research and creation. Moving from West to East, the spaces increase in noise level, allowing those to read silently in the library and perform out in the addition.
The structure is primarily CLT with large open windows, so lighting and climate can pass around as appropriate. The light structure is essential to compliment the existing library.
The form of the building can be interpreted as both an edge and as a sweeping cascade of roofs.
The overhangs were designed for seasonal use and allow light to permeate the southern portion of the addition during colder months.
Summer Lighting
Winter Lighting
