Seattle Library_OMA

Seattle Central Library / OMA + LMN
Architects: OMA +LMN
Location: Seattle, Washington, USA
Client: Seattle Public Library
Program: Central library for Seattle’s 28-branch library system, reading room, book spiral, mixing chamber, meeting platform, living room, staff floor, children’s collection, and auditorium, and 4,600 sqm of parking
Project year: 1999-2004 Constructed Area: 38,300 sqm
Budget: US $169.2 M

The mixing chamber, where all reference librarians congregate to
provide “one-stop” reference for library patrons. Note the stock market
flurry of activity, the wall of information monitors, the digital text
behind the counter, reading “Service Bar,” and the red LCD display in
the upper left, reading “SPL Information Exchange.”

Koolhaas sees the new library as a custodian of the book, a showcase for new information, a place for thought, discussion and reflection - a dynamic presence.

The fact that the contents of a whole library can be stored on a single chip, or the fact that a single library can now store the digital content of all libraries, together represent potential rethinking: new forms of storage enable the space dedicated to real books to be contained; new forms of reading enhance the aura of the real book. Our first operation has been the "combining" and consolidation of the apparently ungovernable proliferation of programs and media. By combining like with like, we have identified five platforms, each a programmatic cluster that is architecturally defined and equipped for maximum, dedicated performance. Because each platform is designed for a unique purpose, they are different in size, density, opacity.
The in-between spaces are like trading floors where librarians inform and stimulate, where the interface between the different platforms is organized - spaces for work, interaction, and play.

Book spiral. The nonfiction collection will be housed in one
continuous spiral that loops through several levels of the building. This
diagram serves to visually explain a design concept not easily described
verbally, and to highlight the form’s primary benefit: the continuous
“Dewey run.” (Courtesy of the Office for Metropolitan Architecture.)