Minimaliteracy

This is a project located in a gentrified neighborhood, where property values are very high and incomes wealthy. Therefore, this library is designed to teach the philosophy of less is more, and to break the unfulfilling cycle of consumerism. Taking inspiration from the simple, one-room Carnegie library, this project is a celebration of immaterial goods such as community and teamwork.

 

 

 

By creating a single “Great Room” which connects all four floors, utilizing the rooftop space as community gardens, and turning the underutilized Erie St. into a plaza adjacent to a park, this project champions community spaces and the importance of civic participation. The project also uses what would be considered mundane and gritty materials such as concrete, steel, and plywood which are left exposed and placed over more common civic materials like stone and glass curtain walls. This encourages the shedding of status-connoting material possessions and alludes to the building's function.