estudio beldarrain expands basque library with sculptural timber library extension

estudio beldarrain expands basque library with sculptural timber library extension
all images by jon cazenave
 

in the spanish town of azkoitia, estudio beldarrain completed an expansion of a library which once served as the railway station. the delicate approach concentrated on conserving the rooted memory of the symmetrical and intricate decoration on the building’s façade. the sculpted extension takes an irregular shape, and clad in wooden railway sleepers (referencing the history of the railway station). the robust cladding conjures an image as though ‘the tracks were dismantled the old sleepers had been stacked near the station’.

the extension is located on the south side, intended to relate the library with the train’s boulevard

the extension is located in the south side wall of the old station, purposely to relate the library to the train’s boulevard. the use of the aged wood as the primary material establishes a connection between the building and nature. the architects worked with the irregular geometrics of the structure, therefore the scheme was generated from the inside to the outside.

prior to the project, the staircase, the service’s premises, the access and the control occupied almost a third of the building area, through the procedure of demolishing the existing building from all those uses and starting anew, a much more efficient interior was fitted.

the irregular form has been designed to not compete against the traditional building next door

the neighboring building was previously the town’s railway station

aged wood has been used on the building’s façade

the interior was completely taken apart and rearranged

the monochromatic interiors

a sculpted box with an irregular shape, takes the new expansion of the library

the new entrance to the aizkibel library extension

drawing of the scheme’s façade

models of the extension