Baton Rouge Downtown Library by Trahan Architects, update
29
Oct 2009
By David Basulto — Filed under: Cultural ,Featured ,Museums and Libraries , Louisiana, Trahan Architects, USA
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We have received an update on the design of the Baton Rouge Downtown Library by Trahan Architects, which clarifies several aspects of the circulations, the relation with the surroundings and details of the facade.
The facade looks very interesting, and on the diagrams you can see how the exterior envelope varies along the elevation to achieve the folded paper like look. A detail of the section reveals further information about this.
All the diagrams/drawings, courtesy of Trahan Architects, after the break.
amazing rendering and an interesting idea! good job trahan architects! looking forward to your upcoming lecture at tulane!
Sorry to be the one ruining this party…
I agree with most comments; renderings are truly divine and diagrams are really great. …. however, it seems they were fixated with the facade’s plasticity and totally neglected the project’s programa. The result- an archaic library typology with an over-designed faced that overkills the building’s circulation. why like this?
One of the best architecture firms in the state of Louisiana, hands down.
Nice to see good work down South. Beautifully drawn.
on occasion we do build things besides swamp huts and smokehouses.
creative idea.
Some architects just know how to make great and simple architecture. The diagrams are clear and the concept is visible from the exterior. Nice.
Really like it!
I am the first to admit that I am not very good at physics, but how is that the plans, sections and renderings show absolutely no columns?
The third rendering in particular grabs my attention.
How are hundreds of tons of books held up by a thin concrete slab with no visible means of support?
As I said, I am not very good at physics, so could someone please describe the structural system to me.
Perhaps the circulation route could be seen as a bent-member truss, the the slabs could be hung off the ‘donut’. In conventional terms of columned slabs, I’m pretty sure it would work the opposite way: chunky columns with a cantilevered ‘donut’and skin. Either way, to pull it off is going to require some gymnastics…
I’m skeptical too. As a concept, I think that there’s something nice about giving the circulation route a position of prominence, making it a more meaningful experience, but there’s a bit of a disjunct between the development of this hermetic, heavily sunshaded warehouse for books, and the attitude the building has as a public program in the city (urbanism). I assume there’s some buried parking here, I assume that people don’t just get beamed into the front lobby, I assume that there is a heavy presence at ground level for security (or hand-sanitizer stations, more recently…)
● thank you for updating!
yes it seems they missed some columns, maybe they’re in a preliminary phase and they wanted to emphasize the horizontality.
for the same reason they maybe missed to put something that protects from sun: on the renderings the exterior surfaces are complitely trasnparent and they could bring many problems (overheating, glare effects…).
If they showed the columns in the drawings, then you’d see how plain & ordinary the design this building is. It’s mainly the lack of columns that makes it look interesting. It’s sloppy design to completely ignore structural integrity.
They may be able to put some hefty shear wall type supports along parts the sides and canitilever at the corners to keep part of the floating effect.
great diagramatics here (and a beautiful building to boot!)
I think the nature of the skin will be the key to how this turns out, and i’m guessing that solar gain is a big issue at that latitude.
How many times have you seen essentially this same diagram? The best thing about this project [in my opinion] is the way they treat the envelope. It makes the elevations and exterior pretty surreal as it is playing with the glass wall and the materiality seems to dissolve. Overall it is a nice project and sits well within its context, the facade makes a nice statement about the typical office buildings around it. I’m just tired of seeing the same diagram of the hands of god coming in and making ramps. It’s become a technique to hide behind.
re: hands of god ramp diagrams…
Why is it “a technique to hide behind”?
It’s a clear, concise and simple method of representation that ensures everyone will understand the logic and form of the building. After all, it is a public project.
This project is not unnecessarily complicated. It’s reassuring that a parametric process can result in [relative] simplicity. Very nicely done.
I really like the idea and the diagrams! Nice presentation too? What surprises me though is that all the books are in stored in direct contact to the sunlight!? Maybe I just don’t get the wall section and how the facade works… Would like to know more about it.
I like that!
are those bended glasses????
would LOVE to see how it gets engineered.
If you look at the drawing you’ll see the glazing is behind the curved screen…….
… and what is the “curved screen” made of?! I am not 100% sure, but to me it would only make sense if its a solid material. A membrane (ETF) would need some pressure difference to be held in such a curve …
amazingly clear concept and execution. wonderful!
Interesting but there is a tinge of optical illusion in this. And some images seem to be developed after the final product.
Gr8 work though….
first: it looks very interesting and is well shown in presentation.
about function: here i see problems: will the people really going up all the way long (so even they have just to go from floor to floor)the outside circulation. of course not. and the ending of both ramps or smooth stairs is not solved it’s ending in the ceiling???????????????? when i go up such a long way then there should be something special. but here it seems like the opposite is the case. here is nothing. the way is just ending. or do i am wrong? and because of big outside circultaion the library will loose a lot of space. function problem too.
about the facade: looks indeed interesting, but wow!!!!! this would be kind of expensive is it? and the detail has to be done quite well that it could be in a way looking as in the rendering shown.
the idea of the stack spiral is good, but it is actually an OMA concept developed in the seatle library. i’m not surprised to see it adopted by others as it is, in a large library, very logical.
OMA invented the stacked spiral staircase? My local 20 years old science centre has the same circulation. the likes of OMA and BIG gets the exposure but that doesnt mean they own the concepts.
Great project by the way.
I think it all started with the London Zoo Penguin Staircase
Really cool! good idea, and nice rendering
This building really ganna make me go and see it. and that’s just enough. Nice idea.
from such a simple concept evolved into a great structure.AMAZING!
Interesting diagrams and renderings..The interior looks amazing!
That is cool
very creative !!
but i would love to see how it gets to be constructed !!!!!!
http://www.urbanfile.it/index.asp?ID=3&SID=417
eXCUSE ME…WHERE IS THE DIFFERENT?
the Idea…it’ so cool!!
difficult to realize in drawing condition!!!
this is cool!
what about the wall section and its curvature details?? i didn’t get it..:(
very nice idea
http://www.2theadvocate.com/news/latest/Mystery-disk-an-issue-in-library.html
12:16 PM Feb 9th
Downtown Library by Trahan Architects, update http://www.archdaily.com/39393/baton-rouge-downtown-library-by-trahan-architects-update/
3:10 AM Sep 17th
City of Baton Rouge just voted to build a new library. Maybe this design has a chance to become real yet.
http://tinyurl.com/2uyj3dq
3:56 PM Sep 4th
Baton Rouge Downtown Library by Trahan Architects, update | ArchDaily http://t.co/2oDA2K5 via @archdaily
9:56 PM Oct 4th
@HamanBucheeri Baton Rouge Downtown http://t.co/RMrCXIBR