The building, with a total area of just over 6,000 square meters, is a maze of bookshelves enclosed in a fragile shell of all-glass walls. The outer perimeter of this unusual structure is assembled from racks 8.5 meters high. Made of light wood, they are arranged in pairs in such a way that one row of bookshelves faces the street, and the other goes directly to the library. Empty rectangular sections are somewhat reminiscent of a honeycomb and give the facades not only the correct "thematic" sound, but also an interesting multidimensionality.
The solemn rhythm of the structure is set by giant rectangular portals laid out from the same shelves. At the same time, they serve as a kind of framing for spectacular interiors and constantly changing paintings "from the life of those who read." It is interesting that according to the architect's plan, sooner or later all the shelves will be filled with books, and their expressive emptiness today only testifies to the enormous potential for the development of the funds possessed by the new library. In general, the capacity of its halls and the total number of storage units are 2 times higher than the capacity of the old university library.
The internal space of the library, as already mentioned, is organized according to the principle of a labyrinth: book shelves form corridors and reading rooms in such a way that you can simply walk along them, looking at all the books in a row, and quickly move from one zone to another if the reader is interested some specific topic. The collection of rare editions is separated from the rest of the library by a conference room, exhibition spaces and a series of small, cozy rooms designed for focused individual work. Public areas, where any reader can come, on the contrary, are designed in an extremely democratic way. For example, not only traditional reading rooms, but also the central staircase, also made of bookshelves, serve as a place for reading and informal communication. On its wide steps you can sit and even lie down, and after reading books and magazines just put back under your feet.
A. M.