Reading Cambridge

CAMBRIDGEREADING

introA library is a collection of sources, resources, and services, and the structure in which it is housed; it is organized for use and maintained by a public body, an institution, or a private individual. In the more traditional sense, a library is a collection of books. It can mean the collection itself, the building or room that houses such a collection, or both. The term “library” has itself acquired a secondary meaning: “a collection of useful material for common use.”

“Henceforth, the visionary experience arises from the black and white surface of printed signs, from

the closed and dusty volume that opens with a flight of forgotten words; fantasies are carefully

deployed in the hushed library, with its columns of books, with its titles aligned on shelves to form a

tight enclosure, but within confines that also liberate impossible worlds. The imaginary now resides

between the book and the lamp. The fantastic is no longer a property of the heart, nor is it found

among the incongruities of nature; it evolves from the accuracy of knowledge, and its treasures lie

dormant in documents. Dreams are no longer summoned with closed eyes, but in reading; and a true

image is now a product of learning: it derives from words spoken in the past, exact recensions, the

amassing of minute facts, monuments reproduced to infinitesimal fragments, and the reproductions of

reproductions. In the modern experience, these elements contain the power of the impossible. Only

the assiduous clamor created by repetition can transmit to us what only happened once. The

imaginary is not formed in opposition to reality as its denial or compensation; it grows among signs,

from book to book, in the interstice of repetitions and commentaries; it is born and takes shape in the

interval between books. It is a phenomenon of the library.”

Michel Foucault, 1967

contentsLIBRARY OF BABEL / BABEL

Jorge Luis Borges

WELLS CATHEDRAL LIBRARY / WELLSUnknown

LAURENTIAN LIBRARY / FLORENCEMichelangelo

BRITISH LIBRARY / LONDONColin St John Wilson

BRITISH LIBRARY / LONDONSir Robert Smirke

GLASGOW SCHOOL OF ART / GLASGOW

Charles Rennie Mackintosh

SEELEY HISTORICAL LIBRARY/ CAMBRIDGEJames Stirling

FRESCATI UNIVERSITY LIBRARY / STOCKHOLMRalph Erskine

NEWHAM COLLEGE RARE BOOKS LIBRARY / CAMBRIDGEVan Heyningen and Haward

CRANFIELD LIBRARY / BEDFORDFoster and Partners

RUSKIN LIBRARY / LANCASTERMJP Architects

BIRMINGHAM PUBLIC LIBRARY / BIRMINGHAMMecanoo Architects

BIRMINGHAM CENTRAL LIBRARY / BIRMINGHAMJohn Madin

CAURTAULD LIBRARY / LONDONLloyd Green Architects

LIBRARY OF BABEL / BABELJorge Luis Borges

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-Books arranged alphabeticallly

-Letters located on bookcase end

-Books chained for safety

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-Until the 15th century the collection of books were not in library conditions.

-The removal of books by Oliver Cromwell during the Reformation were sent to be part of a new public library at St Cuthberts Church.

-Wells library is set up to focus the reader on the text with little distraction - seat facing chained books - solitary reading space

-Library on higher level developing the spirital connotations - the ascension of knowl-edge (knowledge as a spiritual connection).

-Beneath the library the Cloiser walkways allow a space for the reflection of knowledge as one comes down to Earth

-Restricted movement in seating area as benches are stationary and facing book units - books are chained to the shelves meaning one reads in a controlled manner

ORGANISATION OF BOOKS AND READERS

Library (first floor)

Window height above level of

Cloister (ground floor) - space to contemplate under library - access into out-

Larger windows in cloisters to allow light filtration and

> Artificial lighting

-Modern addition of electrical lighting - this is not overpowering but small bursts of light which are located at each reading space and between the reading booths creating uplighting

-Cables run discretely along the timber cornice work

-The lighting perpetuates the idea of solitary reading

ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITIES


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CONCEPTUAL IDEASCONTEXT MAP

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Positioned as the main focus of the dwelling - the town grew around the religious icon

Open space surrounding frames the Cathedral

Series of denser dwellings made from local stone

Road network circulates the Cathedral

-Described as the most ‘poetic of English Cathedrals’

-Built between 1175 and 1490, displaying an Early English (Gothic) style

-Library build mid 15th Century - located over East Cloister

-The collections core subject is theology, but science, medicine, history, exploration, and languages are also well represented; has one of the few chained libraries in Britain

-The library owed its existence to the expansion of education in the 15th Century

-The west front is designed with 300 statues telling the Christian story in limestone. There are niches for around 500

-The west front has a selection of port holes which was designed for the choir to stand behind and sing, making the Cathedral appear to sing

Front sculptural facade


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MOVEMENT PATTERNS

SPATIAL ORGANISATION

Interior to Exterior

Vaulted space to enclosed

1. Later addition of the library sectioned off from the main worship area

2. The Chapter House along the north face allowed a space for meetings and some-where the books could be read aloud; positioned at opposite sends, possibly for accoustic levels

Canterbury Cathedral - location close together, with Chapter House not octaganal

Salisbury Cathedral - Similar layout to Wells Cathedral, but here the two sit in close proximity

Chapter House

Library

Chapter House

Library

Wells Cathedral - Chapter House to Library

Chapter House

Library

Chapter House at Wells

3. Quadrangle aids light penetration into the continuous rows of windows

Public to private

4. Public access into larger expanses of space, whereas private is on the surround-ing attachments.

5. Cathedral designed in a rigid cross forma-tion with emphasis on the Nave and Aisles

Natural lighting

1. Glass was installed in the windows to save books from weather penetration

2. Windows are not installed for the sake of views - but rather for the need for light

3. Windows on Eastern and Western faces meaning morning and evening light - an improvement consideration would be to have north facing light to receive a steady constant in natural light conditions - although it is possible this was positioned to increase the ethereal conditions with strength of light

Linear movement through the library

Book- Seat-

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1. Separate bays which sit two people 2. Light enters from quadrangle open space 3. Repetative structure 4. Little distraction as one faces the book shelf


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BIBLIOTHEQUE DU ROI / PARISBoullee

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Boullee designed Bibliotheque in 18th century, 1785 in Western Europe. It was designed in France, Paris.The type of architecture that he used was Neoclassical, an architecture produced by the neo classicalmovement.The ideas of the design come out of incorporating poetry in architecture in public movement. He wastrying to impress that design of a library should offer more than a silent image of art. He designed thewalls of the palace with tables of constitutional law. Decorating the walls of the palace and present atableau of contemporary events:

Description of the liberary:- At the base he designed two Stylobates.- Two rows of figures indicating the numbers of provinces, each one holding a book of decrees.- Placing an attic above the walls. Designed with a base- relief (representing our national festivals).- Crowning the building the greatest victory a nation can desire.- trying to proceed with economy.

Boullee’s biggest impact:- Development a distinctive abstract geometric style.- Inspired by classical forms.- His work characterised by the removal of all unnecessary ornamentation, inflating geometric. Forms toa huge scale and repeating elements, columns in huge range.- Making architecture impressive of its purpose. (talking architecture)- Walking into book store filled with numberless volumes. (his private cornucopia, his portal, his way toall potentialities)

BIBLIOTHEQUE DU ROI /PARISBoullee

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Primary quality of his library would be:- Size- Immensity ( Bigness)- Enormity (Wildness)- Spectacle (view)- A place which everyone could talk and its like a place which they could socialize .Showing the size of his amphitheatre of literary beside the stretching lines of shelf’s filled with booksare tiny human figures, they are adorned by robes and long beards befitting the guardians of thebounty.Boullee describes that, they hand books to each other with considering the safety. Over scaled arch ishumanized by the small act of handing knowledge, one to another.


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GLASGOW SCHOOL OF ART / GLASGOWCharles Rennie Mackintosh

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ConceptAdapting the grand 1 listed building to modern needs of the libraryand teaching centres whilst respect-ing the Sir William Chambers Pirane-sianstyle vaults and grand design.Adding modern required elements such as mezzanine floors to standout against the piranesian vaults and knowing when in places to blendin with the original design like the di-viding walls almost un differentiatedfrom chambers design.Teaching history of art and picture restoration in a major historic buildingwhich itself has been subject to care-ful restoration.

1 exhibition catologues z5055- z5o722 EXHIBITION CATALOGUES Z5020-Z50553 EXHIBITION CATALOGUES Z5072-Z50954 CURRENT PERIODICALS DISPLAY5 RESHELVING AREAS6 Z80 to Z10807 Z1210 to Z68328 Z6841 to Z91609 D621.VEN to D623.SEB10 ARCHITECTURE A12 to A105111 PERIODICALS (JOURNALS)12 CONFERENCE PROCEEDINGS13 SALES CATALOGUES14 A1051to A110115 A1101 to A900016 B17 to B119017 C27 to C181018 D30 to D54619 D546 to D549

CirculationThe long design of the building allows for free flowing circulationaround the library.Seating spacesSeating ares seem to be in dark cub-by hole type areas not very practicalin terms of light but for noise these areas could be private andquite excellent area for readingNatural light sourceLight is filtered down to the basement level through windows whichtake their light from the offset frontage off the level above which allowslight to filter down.

Plans showing seating natural light and circulationModern staircase exxpresses new aspects added to the building


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Reading Cambridge

Documents

hushed library

wells library

library conditions

cambridgereadingintroa

term library

new public library

collection of books

removal of books