Reconsidering Biblioteca Núria Albó in La Garriga

A proposal that reconsiders the essence and uses of a library in the present day by focusing on a concrete example. The Biblioteca Núra Albó in La Garriga was built in 1997 and resembles an industrial estate. This starting point becomes its built structure, morphology, function and the message it transmits. The study aims to go a step further and analyse the perception that users have of the space, and the uses they will develop for it from the proposal.

The building is well located in the community. Nonetheless, it is a “blind” building and cannot be seen and enjoyed by the public due to its construction, spatial distribution and the uses made of it. Indeed, there is not proper dialogue or useful tension between the building and the idea of a library, since the structure does not belong to the public, and nor is it harmonious. The library needs to change, to be open to the appreciation of people passing in the street.

The project has a double proposal. Firstly, the architectural, permant aspect, that opens communication and a relationship between the library and the local community and also future users. The second prong of the proposal it to segment the utilitarian expression of the space through a smaller, softer scale, whilst dividing it into the different age groups that will use it.