Kirkkonummi is a small town near Helsinki built around a Medieval stone church.  Facing the church, JKMM has transformed the old city library into a new civic center. Although, an adaptive reuse project, the library has doubled in size and appears wholly new built.

Kirkkonummi Library represents a new generation of Finnish libraries.  Libraries are no longer solely about books, but about sharing knowledge and experiences through multiple channels. This phenomenon has changed the library typology: turning them into places for learning and meeting; not unlike a community hall. Finns today see libraries as living rooms outside their homes. 

At Kirkkonummi, a copper shingle clad contemporary form wraps itself around the original structures, creating various reading halls and emphasising two new facades. On the north side the rhythmic post and beam structure is left exposed and filters natural light into the two storey reading space. Another, more informal and more intimate reading room looks up towards the church tower to the south and gives onto a 50 meter long sheltered terrace and cafe.

Read more about the interior design here.