Mirrors and memories: how libraries connect with their communities

Abstract

An architect reflects on the potency of libraries as community assets during the past two thousand years. He traces the preservation of knowledge in ancient Greece, Rome and Egypt, and in Islamic libraries, outlines the course of ecclesiastical library development and the relatively recent rise of public and academic libraries. He identifies their connections with their communities through knowledge, truth, wisdom and beauty, and believes that these aspects are just as relevant today, despite service paradigm shifts and rapidly evolving communications. He concludes by describing libraries he has designed at Dapto, Caringbah, Kuring-gai, Glebe and Avondale College, which reflect his philosophy whilst serving and mirroring their own communities. This article is based on a talk at the inaugural ‘Meet the architect’ session held by the Australian Library and Information Association Library Buildings and Equipment Special Interest Croup, at the State Library of New South Wales, 26 August 1997.

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