INTERIOR LANDSCAPE Re-think It attendees (r.), guided by architect Tod Stevens (in white shirt), bask in the beauty of a sculptural interior space that brings light and serenity to the library’s top floors

There is a lot of wow at the new library at Grand Valley State University in Allendale, MI, which boasts over 150,000 square feet—but the building holds a secret surprise that exemplifies the creativity of the overall project in just over 1,000 square feet. Tucked in the heart of the building on the third floor and reaching to the sky is a gem of an open-air courtyard that takes the breath away even as it must soothe a study-stressed brain.

Attendees of the Re-think It: Libraries for a New Age conference held on campus August 10–12, had the significant perk of taking part in detailed tours of the new Mary Idema Pew Library Learning and Information Commons, which opened in 2013. While many multistory projects eschew signature elements as one ascends flights of stairs, this building, orchestrated by Stantec Architecture, keeps revealing new ones, making each level of this busy, busy building a pleasure for library visitors.

A pathway, not a roadblock

In a sense, the reading courtyard was introduced by the very process of responding to student needs. “The courtyard was ‘found’ by pulling the east and west sides of the building apart to allow pedestrian traffic to cut through...at the first level,” explains Tod Stevens, who served as the principal architect for the project and conducted tours for Re-think It attendees. For context, he adds, each year some three million bus riders access the campus from the south side of the building.

Why not make the library a pathway rather than a roadblock?

But what to do with the space created? “By connecting the east and west sides again with bridges on the upper levels, we had an amazing opportunity to capture and open...outdoor space, getting natural light deep into this section of the building, allowing natural light onto both the third and fourth floors,” Stevens adds. “A poetic moment to be studying in the middle of winter and having it snow in the middle of the building!”

It being Michigan, snow it does, and it settles in the courtyard as well as outside, eventually melting with the spring thaw. Nonetheless, the space invigorates the interior year-round, providing views to students ensconced on the third and fourth floors and daylight that eventually gives way to a night glow. “As we knew the building would be occupied deep into the evening with students studying,” says Stevens, “we also incorporated into this wood canopy vertical linear light columns that create a great effect as they reflect off the glass walls that enclose the terrace.”

The columns that compose the canopy give form and scale and sculptural beauty to the area. They also manifest an original desire for a tree in the space, which then informed the warm wood aesthetic.

“Our original design featured...an ornamental tree, but we couldn’t guarantee that it would survive being enclosed,” says Stevens. “Thus we chose the wood as a material to warm up the space, contrast the glass, and echo that original tree.”

Approaching sustainability

The materials used are part of the sustainable approach to this LEED (Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design) Platinum project. “The building is accented with wood walls that were harvested scraps from the furniture-making industry in Grand Rapids,” explains ­Stevens. “We featured these wood walls in areas throughout the building...the central stair, as well as the hearth reading rooms.”

That wood got special treatment in the courtyard. “We wanted to offer a similar accent here and acknowledge the shade the tree would have provided, so we took the ideas from those wood accents,” says Stevens. “However, in this case, we let them float free, seemingly random—hovering and moving with the wind—almost like wind chimes, but we took great care to keep them from banging into one another or the building!”