Yemail Arquitectura: Libraries in Interior Spaces in Colombia

Bookshelves are one of the elements present in almost every interior space, whether in homes, retail, offices, or even pavilions. Yemail Arquitectura, a Bogotá-based firm, shares its exploration of this element, which plays a key role in the spatial configurations of its multi-use projects.

If, in times of pandemic, homes are our confinement units and the boundary of a physical space we can only escape through a window or balcony, then homes are now our city. And if we allow ourselves to explore the possibilities of this metaphor, we might say that hallways are replacing streets, the dining table is our office, and the entryway is the public square. In this domestic world, furniture and objects write a narrative of who we are; they are also the “constructions” that define the boundaries of activities within this new city.

Recent times have left us with striking images of the overexposure of personal intimacy that we have witnessed through screens—the decisions of how individuals have publicized their domestic lives based on what is at hand and surrounds them daily. In the curation of what is presented to us and where it is presented from, bookshelves have gained significant visibility and, to some extent, validation, considering that for many, they are the chosen backdrop to project the fiction of their home life.