DESIGN TREND Choice but not Chaos

Across many library spaces and settings, furnishings, finishes, and fixtures are tightly coordinated, both in shape and in style, to create a cohesive, seamless experience between more public and more private areas in the library. 

North Branch, Clinton Macomb Public Library, Macomb, MI. An elegant oculus ceiling is reflected in curved light blond wood shelving with room for both collections and displays, customized further with built-in seating.  CREDITS Quinn Evans, architect; Justin Macanochie, photo.

Hyattsville Branch, Prince George’s County Memorial Library System, MD. Undulating wood banners serve to anchor the drop ceiling above the check-out and returns desk while, high above, metal ribbons float between a warm wood-paneled ceiling and large, suspended circular LED lights.  CREDITS Grimm + Parker, architect; ©Sam Kittner, photo.

St. Joseph County Public Library, South Bend, IN. An octagon repeats throughout a meeting room from the skylight through to the suspended LED lighting and tables below. CREDITS Arkos Design and Robert A.M. Stern Architects, architect; ©MILLER + MILLER Architectural Photography, photo.

David W. Mullins Library, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR. Muted, matched warm-toned chairs and couches offer an array of comfortable seating, each balanced with suspended warm globe lights throughout an otherwise large open floor. CREDITS Perry Dean Rogers, Miller Boskus Lack Architects, architect; Perry Dean Rogers, photo.

Salem Public Library, OR. Poufs, flowing couches, and brightly colored armchairs anchor an open, visible floor. Many of the same furnishings, finished in a variety of colors, provide cohesion throughout the floors, spaces, and levels of the library. CREDITS Hacker, architect; Lara Swimmer, photo.