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Mecanoo selected to design the new Macau Central Library in UNESCO World Heritage Site

China Architecture News - Mar 10, 2021 - 16:56   7903 views

Mecanoo selected to design the new Macau Central Library in UNESCO World Heritage Site

Mecanoo has been selected to design a new Central Library in Macau, China, the new building will be located by the Tap Seac square in the historical center of Macau, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Selected by the Cultural Affairs Bureau of the Macau SAR Government, the new library, covering a total of 15,000-square-metre area, will contain library with children’s, teenagers and general collection, exhibition spaces and multifunctional rooms, café and offices.

The new library building is situated on the site of the former Hotel Estoril (designed by the Macau- born Portuguese architect, Alfredo Victor Jorge Álvares), which was the first casino resort in Macau opened in 1962 and has been vacant since the 1990s.

Mecanoo selected to design the new Macau Central Library in UNESCO World Heritage Site

"Libraries are dynamic and continually changing. While clearly a contemporary structure within a traditional context, the new Central Library will provide a forward-thinking platform for influencing its surroundings," said Mecanoo. 

In design, the adjacent square will become an integral part of the library, creating an activated public realm, which will encourage visitors to use all the public amenities that new library can offer.

Mecanoo selected to design the new Macau Central Library in UNESCO World Heritage Site

The building's facade takes inspiration from the former modernist design of Hotel Estoril by filtering the light and creating a controlled indoor climate. An intriguing play of light and shadow is projected onto the floor and walls of the library. The continuous ‘L’ shape that defines the library volume and its uniform facade helps to redefine the square.

As Mecanoo highlights, the façade pattern acts as an extension of the bookshelves, from the inside out, from stack to protective shell. The uniform skin wraps the library volume and opens up like a book page to the main entrance facing the Tap Seac square. This welcoming gesture is an essential part of the relationship between library and square.

Mecanoo selected to design the new Macau Central Library in UNESCO World Heritage Site

Rather than imagining the new Central Library simply as a cultural destination in Macau, Mecanoo’s design proposal is built around the idea of creating a journey – one that commences at city level via the Tap Seac Square and continues through a series of interconnected spaces, leading visitors all the way to the large reading rooms situated at the top level of the building. 

The futurist mural designed by the Italian sculptor Oseo Acconci depicting Fortuna, the Roman goddess of chance, is preserved and integrated it in the new lobby welcoming the visitors.

Mecanoo selected to design the new Macau Central Library in UNESCO World Heritage Site

Within the library, a soaring atrium opens to the uppermost levels of the building, allowing visitors to orient themselves immediately to the activities within and inspiring them to move upwards through the library. 

As visitors move upwards via the spacious tribunes, the building offers unique views out to the mountain and the Tap Seac Square.

Mecanoo selected to design the new Macau Central Library in UNESCO World Heritage Site

The current central library is also located by the same square and will continue serving as a more of an archival library after the new building has been taken into use. The key to the future success of the library lies in being inclusive, open and accessible. A place where everyone feels they belong.

Project facts

Design Team: Mecanoo
Size: 15.000m2
Project Design: 2020-2021
Project Realisation: 2025
Address: Av. de Sidónio Pais, Macau
Client: Cultural Affairs Bureau of the Macau SAR Government
Programme: 15000m2 library with children’s, teenagers and general collection, exhibition spaces and multifunctional rooms, café and offices.

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