“ The overall planning strategy of this innovative and highly technological library
was inspired by the pragmatic efficiency of shopping centers , train stations , and airports , all while avoiding their flaws .
CHEVALIER MORALES
THE COMBINATION OF AN IDEAL PARK AND A SHOPPING MALL While looking through old masterplans of Pierrefonds-Roxboro , the architects came across a graphic image depicting the main planning criteria for green spaces in the district . The drawing showed an idealized park on a generic site . The park was divided into various areas , based on age groups and types of activities : green spaces , rest spaces , play zones , exchange networks , etc .; similar to library planning .
An in-depth study of this document , paired with a reorganization of the various areas , especially the green spaces , became one of the foundations for the project . An interior garden emerged as a result of these explorations . Created by an extraction process , the garden allows natural light as well as part of the natural surroundings to reach the heart of the existing building . The garden also functions as reference point for users and employees of the library .
Typical of suburban environments and often criticized , the shopping mall typology was also investigated . Generic buildings , obedient to functional and economic requirements , shopping malls have one or many focal points . These centers of activities and exchange are almost always topped with a large skylight accentuating the composition .
Another important characteristic of the shopping mall is its circulation network fed by multiple entryways that compels the customer into specific paths . Thus , stairways typically located in central atriums are often voluntarily reversed , as a way of extending the visitor ’ s stay . This typology is particularly interesting to the planning of a library . Its numerous spatial qualities are essential components of what is called a “ third place ”. Users circulating freely , flexibility in spatial organization , multiple movements and experiences are just a few of these advantages .
The project ’ s main elements are directly inspired by the shopping mall typology : wings merging into a central meeting space , a network of stairways , a bleacher , floor openings allowing visual connections , multiple skylights , as well as a civic space . The building ’ s surroundings , usually filled with parking lots , and opaque walls are here replaced by green spaces and glass curtain walls .
Formally , the project adjusts itself according to the site ’ s main elements . Instead of being purely functional and economic , the building ’ s shape is drawn to both manifest its urban presence on Pierrefonds Boulevard , and get closer to the wooded park , and to retract to reveal existing greenery islands on the site .
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