Arkitektfirma Helen & Hard, AS

Vennesla Library And Culture House

VENNESLA LIBRARY AND CULTURE HOUSE

 Helen & Hard

Vennesla Library And Culture House
© Emile Ashley

ARCHITECTS
Helen & Hard

MANUFACTURERS
Reynaers Aluminium

CLIENT
Vennesla Kommune

AREA
1938.0 m²

PHOTOGRAPHS
Emile Ashley

BUDGET
66,4 mill NOK

YEAR
2011

LOCATION
Vennesla, norway

CATEGORY
Library

Vennesla Library And Culture House
© Emile Ashley

Text description provided by architect.

For their new library and community center in Vennesla, Norwegian architects Helen & Hard bring a sophisticated elegance to the public facility in Norway.

The project links an existing community house and learning center, and seeks to become an extension of the main city square with its transparent facade and urban loggia.

Vennesla Library And Culture House
© Emile Ashley
Vennesla Library And Culture House
© Emile Ashley

The expressive ribs combine structure, technical infrastructure, and functionality into one architectonic element that creates a dynamic aesthetic identity for the project to meet the client’s original intent to mark the city’s cultural center.

27 prefabricated glue-laminated timber ribs define the spatial expression of the interior, and their offset construction allows the curves to function as spatial interfaces with inset lighting elements to provide a soft glow to the interiors and acoustic absorbents which contain the air conditioning ducts.

"In this project, we developed a rib concept to create useable hybrid structures that combine a timber construction with all technical devices and the interior," explained the architects.

Vennesla Library And Culture House
© Emile Ashley
Vennesla Library And Culture House
© Emile Ashley

The ribs change throughout the interior to inform different spaces; at the main entrance, the rib spans the entire width of the building and then slowly condense to create more intimate rooms.

While the building's roof is informed by the geometry of the curves, the massing along traces the natural lines of the site and responds to the main street by folding down towards it.

Vennesla Library And Culture House
© Emile Ashley
Vennesla Library And Culture House
© Emile Ashley

Typical of Helen & Hard's work, the project also focuses on reducing the energy need through the use of high standard energy saving solutions in all new parts of the project.

Vennesla Library And Culture House
© Emile Ashley
Vennesla Library And Culture House
© Emile Ashley

The library is a “low-energy” building, defined as class “A” in the Norwegian energy-use definition system.

Vennesla Library And Culture House
© Emile Ashley
Vennesla Library And Culture House
© Emile Ashley


Vennesla Library And Culture House
© Emile Ashley
Vennesla Library And Culture House
© Emile Ashley


Vennesla Library And Culture House
site plan
Vennesla Library And Culture House
ground floor plan
Vennesla Library And Culture House
mezzanine plan
Vennesla Library And Culture House
cellar plan

Arkitektfirma Helen & Hard, AS
T +47 406 40672
Arkitektfirma Helen & Hard, AS
Erfjordgata 8, 4014 Stavanger, Norway