Xiantong Experimental School Library

Working on social projects helps us to explore designs with a humanistic approach. We hope that the spaces we design will engage their users, and be nice places for them to enjoy.

There is a noticeable trend that school children are more attracted to electronic products than to books. Teachers at school are concerned by this trend, and wish to encourage students back into libraries, so they can have a well-balanced education.

Xiantong Experimental School Library is located in a new school in Shenzhen, China. We designed the library to be fun and playful, with areas where students can sit and read quietly or interact with other students. The loose layout helps the students to explore and discover new books.

Although we spent extra efforts working with a difficult China contractor during the construction process, we are happy that the end result still presents most of our original ideas, making it a library that children love to spend time in.

• Utilizing high ceiling space, we created an extra level to connect the library to the public stairwell, so the library becomes a welcoming place for children to detour before or after going to class.

• The library platform, providing multiple zoning, is designed as a mountain form where children could climb and wonder in different sections.

• The stepping platform becomes a fun place for readers to interact with children who are going to classroom.

• The façade is design to be interactive with the corridor, where children could sit along and also seeing children who are reading at the inside.

• A quiet story-telling room under the hill could be used for quiet reading or small class sharing sessions.

• Tetris sofa allows children sit and read but also to have fun to move them around.