NYU KEVORKIAN LIBRARY
For this university library of Middle Eastern Studies, TTC designed furniture, shelving, lighting, and a new reception desk as part of the institution's makeover.
This library of Middle Eastern Studies was housed in the first floor of the Middle Eastern Studies Building at New York University, on the south side of Washington Square Park. While the building was modern and beautiful, it wasn’t able to serve the library’s needs, in part because the entry into the space was blunt, lacked a sense ceremony, and offered no sense of transition between the noisy world outside and the serene space within.
TTC’s solution highlights the usefulness of a single tall glass wall, which created a vestibule, allowed the library to institute improved climate controls and provided acoustical separation for people using the library.
The wall also provided additional security, yet at the same time the space remained visually open and light with no sense of a restrictive enclosure.
The wall also provided additional security, yet at the same time the space remained visually open and light with no sense of a restrictive enclosure.
The furniture on two mezzanines was designed by TTC to facilitate improved access to the collections, as were the shelving units, lighting fixtures, and a new reception desk. The key focal point of the library was the stacks. Steel rods suspended the two levels of stacks effortlessly over a communal table. The structure provided a modern counterpoint to the ornate Islamic architectural elements that anchor the library’s interior.
Read More: NYU Website