Public libraries fulfill a unique role in society, which can be attributed to a number of distinctive qualities. Naming these qualities more explicitly helps to further clarify the position of the library in society and in the urban environment.
Two recently built Dutch libraries (Forum Groningen and LocHal Tilburg) demonstrate how a different local context results in two very different concepts.
GESAMTKUNSTWERK OR TOOLBOX?
How different urban contexts led to two very different libraries: Forum Groningen and LocHal Tilburg
Two years in a row, a public library building won just about every architecture prize there was to win in the Netherlands. The LocHal in Tilburg, which opened at the beginning of 2019, was even named World Building of the Year. A year later, Forum Groningen was awarded the prize for Building of the Year 2020 by the Branchevereniging van Nederlandse Architectenbureaus (Dutch Architects' Association), the building ‘with the most added value for clients and society’. Perhaps even more remarkable was the fact that architecture critics and visitors were all in agreement.
