Considered to be one of the most modern libraries in Europe, the Stuttgart Public Library is located in the city centre’s Mailänder Platz area, close to the Europaviertel, in Germany. The building, designed by Korean architect Eun Young Yi, is cube-shaped and does not go unnoticed, grabbing the attention of tourists and photographers from all over the world. Covering an area of 18,000 sqm, this space is the venue for a little bit of everything. Here you can find several graphic solutions; you can create books in the children’s library workshop, digitalise old records, play the guitar, drums or the piano. This can all be enjoyed with views from the top of the building, in the LesBar café on the rooftop, looking over the city.
THE BUILDING, DESIGNED BY KOREAN ARCHITECT EUN YOUNG YI, IS CUBE-SHAPED AND DOES NOT GO UNNOTICED
The architectural design makes for a very homogeneous building. Inside, the colours of the rooms are constant. The building has a double façade and a cubic construction, and whether it is concrete bricks or frosted glass in 9 x 9 metre panels, the exterior finish maintains a continuous uniform character. Upon entering the building, the visitor gets an immediate sense of the architectural design, with the layout allowing you to look from west to east and north to south. The circular foyer surrounds the Heart– the staircase that wows everyone –, and it is here that the visitor begins their cultural journey via the imposing stairs, which develop in the middle of the building in a cube-shaped space lit by a central light.
On all eight floors information boards can be seen to guide the visitor. There are also audio guides with all information and details about the library and the architectural project that are provided free of charge at the main entrance desk.You can find the electronic catalogue and access what you are looking for through the terminals on the shelves, as well as access a database of international press and knowledge portals, which are distributed in each section. To use the equipment available in the building, adults must purchase a library pass, which is issued at the information desk on the ground floor upon presentation of ID. Under-18s can use the Municipal Library free of charge.
The circular foyer surrounds the Heart– the staircase that wows everyone –, and it is here that the visitor begins their cultural journey
This space is so well equipped that, to return an item you have borrowed, all you have to do is go to one of the various self-service machines available on the library floors. If you want to read e-books, e-papers, listen to audio files, or access any e-learning material, you can request these products here also.
Throughout the library there are quiet spaces to read, work, or pass the time, without interruptions. There are also work areas, where you can write and go online. And there are many different spaces to enjoy in the Stuttgart library. For example, on the ground floor there is the ‘showroom’, an experimental space for digital events; on the lower ground floor there is the Max Bense Forum, an event’s room for about 300 guests; on the 1st floor there is the sound studio, the music section, digitalisation programmes, LPs, notation software and software for digitalisation and composition; on the 2nd floor there is the Hausch Children’s Room, the children’s section, with media recommendations for children; the 4th floor is the place for ‘Literature and Library’, where the literary life of Stuttgart and its surroundings meets; the 6th floor is prepared to welcome people with visual impairment, who can use a special computer and screen reader there, as the whole library was designed to be accessible to all; on the 8th floor, there is the Graphoteca, art section, where it is possible to borrow pieces and where you can enjoy a cup of coffee at LesBar while enjoying views over the cityscape. You can visit from Monday to Saturday, between 9am and 9pm.
THE BUILDING, DESIGNED BY KOREAN ARCHITECT EUN YOUNG YI, IS CUBE-SHAPED AND DOES NOT GO UNNOTICED
The architectural design makes for a very homogeneous building. Inside, the colours of the rooms are constant. The building has a double façade and a cubic construction, and whether it is concrete bricks or frosted glass in 9 x 9 metre panels, the exterior finish maintains a continuous uniform character. Upon entering the building, the visitor gets an immediate sense of the architectural design, with the layout allowing you to look from west to east and north to south. The circular foyer surrounds the Heart– the staircase that wows everyone –, and it is here that the visitor begins their cultural journey via the imposing stairs, which develop in the middle of the building in a cube-shaped space lit by a central light.
On all eight floors information boards can be seen to guide the visitor. There are also audio guides with all information and details about the library and the architectural project that are provided free of charge at the main entrance desk.You can find the electronic catalogue and access what you are looking for through the terminals on the shelves, as well as access a database of international press and knowledge portals, which are distributed in each section. To use the equipment available in the building, adults must purchase a library pass, which is issued at the information desk on the ground floor upon presentation of ID. Under-18s can use the Municipal Library free of charge.
The circular foyer surrounds the Heart– the staircase that wows everyone –, and it is here that the visitor begins their cultural journey
This space is so well equipped that, to return an item you have borrowed, all you have to do is go to one of the various self-service machines available on the library floors. If you want to read e-books, e-papers, listen to audio files, or access any e-learning material, you can request these products here also.
Throughout the library there are quiet spaces to read, work, or pass the time, without interruptions. There are also work areas, where you can write and go online. And there are many different spaces to enjoy in the Stuttgart library. For example, on the ground floor there is the ‘showroom’, an experimental space for digital events; on the lower ground floor there is the Max Bense Forum, an event’s room for about 300 guests; on the 1st floor there is the sound studio, the music section, digitalisation programmes, LPs, notation software and software for digitalisation and composition; on the 2nd floor there is the Hausch Children’s Room, the children’s section, with media recommendations for children; the 4th floor is the place for ‘Literature and Library’, where the literary life of Stuttgart and its surroundings meets; the 6th floor is prepared to welcome people with visual impairment, who can use a special computer and screen reader there, as the whole library was designed to be accessible to all; on the 8th floor, there is the Graphoteca, art section, where it is possible to borrow pieces and where you can enjoy a cup of coffee at LesBar while enjoying views over the cityscape. You can visit from Monday to Saturday, between 9am and 9pm.
