KANSAI-KAN
LIBRARY
KYOTO
JAPAN, 1996
CULTURE
PR–099
Inserting architecture into nature. Almost nothing, just a flash of light, a shining line—this is the poetic and immaterial sign of the Library’s presence.
MEDIAS
018
PROGRAM
The Kansai-kan Library organizes its spaces around functions dedicated to consultation, research, and the dissemination of knowledge. It includes public and specialized reading rooms, reception and public service areas, and conference rooms. The building also incorporates storage facilities, administrative offices, and technical rooms.
Situation
Kansai Science City, Kyoto, Japan
Year
1996
Status
International contest
Site area
38 000 m²
Project area
55 000 m²
Project management
Government Department of Buildings, Ministry of Construction, Tokyo
Project implementation
Dominique Perrault Architecte
DESCRIPTION
Buried in the ground, the Kansai-Kan library appears as a fragment of the landscape, an organic growth born of the topography. Only a sliver of glass protrudes, its shifting reflections capturing the eye and exerting a discreet but continuous force of attraction. To reach this “crystal,” visitors cross a vast wooden esplanade, bordered by a wooded garden that gradually accompanies the descent to the building.
READ MORE ⨁
As you approach the entrance, your perceptions multiply: transparencies overlap, images double, and the surrounding nature intertwines with the calm and focused universe of the reading rooms below. Inside, a vast space bathed in soft, filtered overhead light welcomes and organizes the various functions related to reading. The reading areas are delimited by fabric-covered enclosures, offering readers quiet, comfortable, and human-scale spaces while preserving the visual continuity of the volume. In this vast room, the layout is designed to be flexible and scalable, capable of adapting to uses, scientific developments in the collections, and technological transformations in reading modes.
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