Modern library by Toyo Ito

Library of Tama Art University in Tokyo is one of the last project of Toyo Ito. It was built as part of the body of the Tama Art University. The total area of the building is 5 639.46 m2 The library consists of two floors and an underground repository. Its full capacity in underground storage is 300,000 books. The idea and the architect is to provide a wide range of opportunities to develop the intellect of a new and different perspective. “The library is a visualization of the idea that although implementation remains abstract – Ito says.

Initially, the project has been contemplated and planned as a huge “cave” to be built entirely underground. The specifics of the building required to take into account several important factors – as regards materials, the burden should bear the construction, the fact that books are flammable and can not tolerate moisture. So Ito focuses on dvoynopodsilena kostruktsiya steel covered with concrete. Everywhere in the building walls are lined with impermeable ogneoporna and moisture isolation. The architect is not overlooked and environmentally sound side of things – water used in the building is purified and used for technical needs.

“To allow the flow of thought and ideas of people to freely enter the building, thinking about structure with arches, placed at random, to give the impression that the slope of the garden and is still rife in the building naturally – explains Ito. Specific arches are made of steel plates covered with concrete. They are arranged in curves that intersect at several points. These crossings allow to maintain their extremely elegant look at the bottom, while able to support heavy upper floors. The length of the arcs ranged from 1.8 m to 16 m and their width is always 200 mm. The points of intersection are helping to segregated areas within the overall space. The slope of the first floor, which follows the natural slope of the land contributes to the entry of natural architecture in the surrounding scenery, which, again, contributes to spatial merger between exterior and interior.

The first floor has a large gallery where students can get the latest information from different fields. In the gallery are carried out other interesting events and exhibitions. Headroom on the first floor ranged from 3.4 m to 6.6 m. On the second floor reading rooms. Headroom here is 5.1 m by 6.7 m. Each area in the library has an individual sound and simultaneously reached a sense of visual and spatial continuity.

The new library is a place where everyone finds his style of communication with the books and movies. New type of library space which creates a new type of emotion. Shelves and desks are a variety of shapes, glass partitions, in turn, serve as message boards and comments. The staircase that leads to the second floor is also blunt, which is in line with the overall concept of Ito. When you stand under the massive arches, you’ll understand why Toyo Itoe often described as “always seeking the fluidity of space.

“Thanks to the strategic placement of furniture in the reading rooms are assigned paradoxically contradictory characteristics – fluidity and stillness of space. This gives a spatial concept of freedom and mnogolikost architecture, while it provides natural energy from the earth, which is transformed into an architectural order.” – Ito added