Shepley Bulfinch has won the “Single Space” category in the 2012 Library Interior Design Competition for the Learning Commons for Atlanta University Center’s Robert W. Woodruff Library. The biennial design award is jointly sponsored by the International Interior Design Association (IIDA) and the American Library Association (ALA).
The 2010 interior renovation transformed an existing 1980s library into a dynamic gathering place and center of teaching, learning, and scholarship for the communities of the Atlanta University Center’s four constituent Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Central to Shepley Bulfinch’s design response was the creation of a learning commons to span from the main entrance to the central stair. This now serves as the library’s welcoming ‘front door’ and provides primary services and a variety of settings for learning, working, and collaborating.
The design challenges included creating an entry sequence to orient patrons and highlight services; establishing a sense of identity visible from the exterior; and providing a flexible extended-hours access for part of the learning commons. The original marble entry stairs, which were meant to convey a sense of grandeur to visitors, were re-envisioned as a seating area for poetry readings and other small events. They also became a natural demarcation for a portion of the learning commons that could be secured from the rest of the library as an extended-hours space. A glass folding door rises vertically during normal operating hours to act as a canopy. +
Related Stories
| Apr 10, 2012
JE Dunn completes two medical office buildings at St. Anthony’s Lakewood, Colo. campus
Designed by Davis Partnership Architects, P.C., Medical Plaza 1 and 2 are four-story structures totaling 96,804-sf and 101,581-sf respectively.
| Apr 10, 2012
THINK [about architecture] Scholarship enters 15th year
Students are invited to submit two-minute creative videos that illustrate how they interact with their school's design and what the space makes possible.
| Apr 10, 2012
Structured Development & Bucksbaum close on new retail site in Chicago
The site is the location of New City, a mixed-use development that will feature 370,000-sf of retail space and 280 residential rental units.
| Apr 10, 2012
Moriarty & Associates selected as GC for Miami’s BrickellHouse Condo
Construction of the 46-story development is schedule to get underway this summer and be completed in 2014.
| Apr 6, 2012
Flat tower green building concept the un-skycraper
A team of French designers unveil the “Flat Tower” design, a second place winner in the 2011 eVolo skyscraper competition.
| Apr 6, 2012
National Association of Women in Construction forum to be hosted in Philadelphia
The April Forum, titled “Declare your Independence!” will feature educational sessions on topics ranging from Managing the Generation Gap and Dealing with Contract language across state borders to Strategic and Succession Planning.
| Apr 6, 2012
Rooftop solar energy program wins critical approval from L.A. city council
Los Angeles Business Council applauds decision allowing LADWP to create new national model for rooftop solar energy
| Apr 6, 2012
Batson-Cook breaks ground on hotel adjacent to Infantry Museum & Fort Benning
The four-story, 65,000-ft property will feature 102 hotel rooms, including 14 studio suites.
