24 BAYEUX MEDIA LIBRARY, NORMANDY
The project is almost completely transparent thanks to its mainly glazed facades and the absence of partitions
workshops, and ‘the Work Room,’ which is reserved for “calm and studious activities,” and contains a selection of heritage documents. The final two zones are the cafe and patio, an “indoor green garden” where users can read and relax.
PROJECT FACTFILE
Architect: Serero Architectes Urbanistes Client: Bayeux Intercom Acoustics: Pasquini Floor area: 2,550 m2 Cost: €5,020,000
Interior design The design, as per good practice for libraries, transitions from the naturally often busy reception and open spaces to quieter, more internal areas, where concentration is a must. David Serero explains that the functions required in the open-plan ground floor “are only made possible by the 400 pieces of furniture that have been designed and assembled inside the library.” The open plan design leaves the building “adjustable to future evolutions of reading, sharing, playing and learning.” The carefully-designed furniture items “define the functions and usage of each part of the library more than the architecture itself,” says the project architect. They include double-width armchairs, for working with laptops, double sofas for video gaming using headsets, and adjustable leather stools for piano and guitar playing. There are also oak storage cupboards intended for “agricultural seed sharing,” and round tables with counterbalanced feet for “all in one” computer working, as well as soft items like bean bags for quick stops to read magazines and comics.
The interior design concept was to create
a “living room-like space,” therefore a comfortable environment for reading, working and listening to music, but also playing video games, reading a newspaper, surfing the web, or activities like sewing.
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The key internal materials are limestone (floors), white-lacquered steel, Corian and Oak, combining with the ever-present glass. The internal patio provides the finishing touch to the feeling of calm relaxation, echoing a cloister of the nearby cathedral, with a range of planting common to Normandy including apple and cherry trees. With ventilation being crucial in a large, glazed building, a “double-flow” mechanical ventilation system supports the dominant natural ventilation. While not being sustainability certified, the building, which has underfloor heating throughout, has been designed to be high-efficiency and low energy, delivering less than 20 kW.h.m2
. Conclusion
This building provides a strong statement in glass within a sensitive, historic context, but its careful, high-quality design provides for the varied functions it accommodates, while adding a new subtle urban landmark. It provides as much natural light as it can, alleviating carbon costs, but also providing the best possible environment for concentration and study.
The proof is in the pudding with a municipal asset such as this, i.e. is it being used to the levels expected? The statistics are impressive, since opening there have been 6000 subscriptions to the library, and the population of Bayeux is only 4000! Of course this is partly due to the city’s popularity with tourists, but also speaks to the demand for a multi-faceted public resource like this, and one who’s impressively transparent skin helps it relate to its surroundings.
ADF FEBRUARY 2021
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