- In 1941, Nobel Prize nominee Jorge Luis Borges wrote his famous short story "The Library of Babel." In it, a vast universe of books is contained in one place. If the fictional world Borges created were ever to materialize on Earth, it would certainly resemble the recently completed Tianjin Binhai Library in northeastern China.
(Ossip van Duivenbode/CASACOR)
Located near Beijing, the beautiful library was designed by Dutch design firm
MVRDV. Known for its futuristic and unorthodox structures around the world (like this Tetris-like modular box concept),
MVRDV has successfully created an elegant, if not revolutionary, new design for libraries.
(Ossip van Duivenbode/CASACOR)
(Reprodução Architectural Digest/CASACOR)
The library's energy, however, comes not from the books, or the undulating shelves, but from the spherical eye situated in the middle of the building.
(Ossip van Duivenbode/CASACOR)
The library was designed and built in a record-breaking three years due to the tight schedule imposed by the local municipality. With a capacity of 1.2 million books, it not only provides a place for reading, but also connects visitors to a nearby park.
(Ossip van Duivenbode/CASACOR)
What is certain is that no library in the world looks anything like the
MVRDV -designed library in Tianjin, China. What is not known, however, is the cost of its construction, as the budget has not yet been released.
