Architecture in the information continuum

This essay focuses on recent development in the design of media libraries as an evolution of the traditional library. The Paper retraces the connections between the spatial traits of the libraries and the underlying idea of access to information through the description of “transitional” projects from the beginning of the 1990s, namely the transition from strong geometric organization of information in the space as in the loci method and in the theatre of memory to flowing and freeform geometries related to the combinatoriality of information retrieval systems or the World Wide Web. For this purpose it focuses on three specific features of such buildings: the connection to the public and their approach to the wider context of the city through the use of adjacent public spaces and facades; the internal geometry of shelves, desks and paths and the usage of electronic devices as means of display, research and organization. Subsequently three contemporary projects are analyzed to highlight the different strategies of the designers in relation to their context and their attitude towards Information Technologies. As a conclusion, the scenarios they evoke for the future developments of such facilities are described and analyzed in their social dimension as civic buildings.