Libraries in the Present-Day Society

February 2021

 

When considering the design of a library, we should deconstruct the present idea of a library. We should ask “what constitutes a library” in the context of the community and the state today, and perhaps enlarge it to include inter-state relationships i.e. international relationships. Why? I contend that public buildings should no longer just hold a single programme, or maintain a singular relationship with its users. We must ponder on other factors such as:

  1. Complex human relationship – within the community, ethnicity, and residents’ nationality as is in the case of Singapore 

  2. Connectivity, mobility, and production of knowledge in a smart environment

  3. Optimization of land resources in a city-state like Singapore

Hence, an inquiry into a ’library’ must be multi-dimensional in its purpose and fulfilling needs. Gone are days when a library only has an archival role in the community.

The design process should begin with an inquiry into the following dynamics:

  1. Local (domestic) and International (foreign)
    Note: For a city-state, like Singapore, whose survival is predicated on international collaboration, trade and commerce (defined in the broadest sense)

  2. Cultural-social-technological practices and community
    Note: What is the common ground given the diversity of ethnic groups and nationalities in parallel with an increasingly AI-driven economy? 

  3. Social contracts and the sense of place through the lenses of gender, age group and ethnicity
    Note: Differences and commonalities in tangible and intangible forms; in an emergent 4.0 economy

  4. Specificity. Libraries as catalysts in generating, exchanging and dissemination of knowledge
    Note: Libraries as knowledge production hubs

  5. Physical attributes. Formal design vocabulary that does a deep dive of libraries being more than just containers of books and information; but as arteries of communal life and a formal expression of new production, distribution, and communication hubs of knowledge.

Note: At a macro level, as arteries and beads across the site and the community. At the building design level, an expression of human-to-human relationships, human-to-environment relationships, building-to-environment relationships, technology-to-building relationships, and intra-technology-connectivity relationships. As a new hub for knowledge creation, the library should also be a test bed of innovative design ideas.

I am making an argument that architects should not begin designing a library based on the storage and retrieval of books, or spaces for users to read and research alone - this is an oversimplification. Over the last decade, artificial intelligence and information technology have moved from the periphery to the centre. They are the primary  influences and drivers of building design and construction.

 

Considerations for the design process

  1. What constitutes a library? The past and present. From an archival of knowledge to a generator of knowledge (present and future). From passivity to interactivity. From the reception of past wisdom to anticipating coming (if not already present) social economic trends. 

  2. The library in contemporary society must be multi-faceted, multi-disciplinary, multi-purpose, scalable, interchangeable. Must be in sync with technological advancement and cognizant of the role of social media (virtual and tangible spaces) in stimulating human behaviour.

  3. Humanity and natural environment. Design strategy for behaviours, co-existence. From one of passive viewing of greenery to one of active collaboration and interdependent bonds.

  4. Physical extent of site and the neighbouring built environment. Connectivity and mobility. Strengthening physical attributes. Place vs spaces. Enhancing and not destroying.

  5. Architecture design response arises from programmes, overarching users’ needs at present and in future (refer Item 1-4). A social contract between site, users, and building. Excellent design goes beyond ‘iconic’ delights. Successful building always manages to weave all factors together. 

  6. Contemporary design is a competition of differing needs. It must embrace a multitude of demands. It demands a robust narrative to generate a design tapestry with a rich repertoire of poetic spaces. There is specificity (different user’s needs) and yet there is commonality. When the specific threads meet, commonality emerges. This is the social contract: one derived from negotiation, compromise, and mutual accommodation. Its power lies in its contents.