▪ INFORMATION

DATE : 2018

STATUS : COMPETITION

LOCATION : SAKAKA, SAUDIA ARABIA

AREA : 4500 SQRM

PROGRAM : LIBRARY

▪ DESCRIPTION

“What once was a left and a right, perhaps now it’s time to become a center !”

The perplexity of the current DAR AL-ULOUM library comes from the past building’s restrictive form and behavior. With the progress of knowledge and the large sum of information attained consistently, Libraries today have to accrue its intelligent capacity and serve as a vehicle to expand its capabilities for sharing information, possibilities of materials exchange, allow for opportunistic future expansion; consequently, cultivating the people to make a quantum leap in pushing culture forward. Our proposal’s intention integrated successful design decisions with economic feasibility as well as refraining from demolition of the buildings existing historical condition. Preserving structural and material qualities of the past with the progressive rezoning and use of the building’s current needs as not only a library, but also as a cultural center for many social and educational activities inside and outside with the idea of flexibility for an easy future expansion. Our design proposal simultaneously supports both public planning goals of energizing the public spaces to impact pedestrianization and promote healthier commutes, as well as reinforcing energy saving within the building. The layering process of our design on site was broken down to 3 modes of intervention:

BUILDING → LANDSCAPE → CONTEXT