At first, books were kept in chests but as they became published in bulk they moved into the cupboard. The doors came off and the bookcase began to evolve. Today, bookcases can be integral architectural elements that shape space and, in some cases, even light. In celebration of International Day of the Book on April 23rd, ArchDaily compiled this round-up of architecturally, innovative bookcases.

Scroll down to see inventive architectural book storage from Alberto Kalach, ARCHSTUDIO, Toyo Ito, and more.

+ 17

Murat Tabanlioglu is modernizing the cultural center his father, Dr. Hayati Tabanlioglu, once designed in the 1960s, and again in the 1970s after his first design burnt down. The Ataturk Cultural Center will be the new centrally-located home for Istanbul's arts and culture scene. Not only will the new center have one of the largest opera houses in the world but it will also provide art galleries, libraries, cafes and restaurants for visitors.

+ 8

+ 17

• Architects

  Tabanlıoğlu Architects

• Location

  Yenişehir Mh., Osmanlı Bulvarı No:7, 34912 İstanbul/Istanbul, Turkey

• Architect in Charge

  Murat Tabanlıoğlu & Melkan Gürsel Tabanlıoğlu

• Design Team

  Murat Cengiz, Çağrı Akay, Seray Öztürk, Selçuk Güllü, Gökhan Çatıkkaş, Aybala Öz, Ayşe Sevig, Mine Alsinevi, Kaan Keleş, Melis Selis

• Area

  55359.0 sqm

• Project Year

  2013

• Photographs

  Murat Germen

Winners have been announced for the 2014 LEAF Awards. Spanning 14 categories, including best refurbishment of the year (pictured above), all winning projects “demonstrate buildings that are setting the benchmark for the international architectural and design community.”

See which project landed Jean Nouvel top honors, after the break.

+ 17

+ 15

• Architects

  Tabanlioglu Architects

• Location

  Tripoli, Libya

• Architectural Project Team

  Salih Yılgörür, Ali Çalışkan, Emre Özberk, Oktay Murat, Zeynep Eker, Merve Demirbaş, Elif Akçakaya, Salih Çıkman, Işıl Taşkın, Başak Uysal, Elif Selçuk, Zeynep Çorakçı

• Architect in Charge

  Melkan Gürsel, Murat Tabanlıoğlu

• Area

  25000.0 m2

• Project Year

  2010

• Photographs

  Cemal Emden

+ 53

• Architects

  Emre Arolat Architects, Tabanlıoğlu Architects

• Location

  Balmumcu Mh., Zincirlikuyu Sokak, 34398 Beşiktaş/Istanbul Province, Turkey

• Area

  639.0 sqm

• Project Year

  2013

• Photographs

  Thomas Mayer

+ 20

• Architects

  Tabanlıoğlu Architects

• Location

  Kazakhstan

• Architect in Charge

  Melkan Gürsel, Murat Tabanlıoğlu

• Design Team

  Salih Yılgörür, Emre Özberk, Fırat Güneş Balcı,, Ali Çalışkan, Canan Sarıdal, Tuğçe Güleç, Emre Çetinel, Anday Bodur, Cengiz Özdemir

• Interior Design

  Tabanlıoğlu Architects

• Main Contractor

  Sembol Construction

• Structural

  Stroy Project

• Mechanical Consultancy

  DEC Mühendislik

• Area

  83280.0 sqm

• Project Year

  2012

• Photographs

  Thomas Mayer

+ 39

• Architects

  Tabanlioglu Architects

• Location

  Izmir, Turkey

• Area

  22760.0 m2

• Project Year

  2009

• Photographs

  Thomas Mayer

+ 39

• Architects

  Tabanlioglu Architects / Melkan Gürsel & Murat Tabanlioglu

• Location

  Istanbul/Istanbul Province, Turkey

• Area

  165169.0 m2

• Project Year

  2011

+ 9

• Architects

  Tabanlioglu Architects

• Location

  Astana, Kazakhstan

• Architect

  Tabanlıoğlu / Melkan Gürsel & Murat Tabanlıoğlu

• Project Team

  Murat Cengiz, Salih Yılgörür, Hakan Bağcı, Süleyman Akka, Nihal Şenkaya Akkaş, Mehmet Vaizoğlu, Serhat Yavuz, Arzu Çetingöz, Ahmet Çorapçıoğlu

• Structural Engineer

  Buro Happold (London), Arce (İstanbul)

• Mechanical Engineer

  Dinamik

• Electrical Engineer

  HB Teknik

• Sports Consultant

  Populous

• Client

  Alke - Sembol

• Main Contractor

  Alke - Sembol

• Site Area

  232,485 sqm

• Hard / Soft Landscape

  194,531 sqm

• Area

  0.0 m2

• Project Year

  2007

• Photographs

  Cemal Emden

+ 19

• Architects

  Tabanlıoğlu Mimarlık / Melkan Gürsel & Murat Tabanlıoğlu

• Location

  Ankara/Ankara Province, Turkey

• Project Team

  Murat Cengiz , Çağrı Akay, Ozan Öztepe, Ali Eray

• Interior Design

  Tabanlıoğlu Architects

• Structural Engineering

  Altıneller

• Mechanical Engineering

  Elmak

• Electrical Engineering

  Öneren Proje Mühendislik

• Architectural Lighting

  Studio Dinnebier

• Landscape Consultant

  Esin Kılınç

• Client

  Ortadoğu Otomotiv ve Tic.A.Ş

• Main Contractor

  D - Yapı / Ataman İnşaat

• Area

  4299.0 m2

• Project Year

  2008

• Photographs

  Thomas Mayer