Seinäjoki Library is located next to Alvar Aalto’s masterful civic center. The challenge was to design the new library with a modern vision whilst connecting it to Aalto’s architecture.

Seinäjoki Library is one of Finland’s first new generation libraries. Libraries are no longer only about books, they have changed to become citizens’ living rooms. Places where people gather and meet, and where knowledge is accessible to all.

Dividing the new building into three copper clad, sculptural sections was an important architectural insight that helped to reconcile its large volume with the scale of the civic centre. The Library’s large glazed facades frame generous views of the surrounding Aalto buildings.

At the core of the new building’s interior design is a large central reading terrace, a venue for events and a place for spending time, which connects the collections and leads visitors downstairs through a subterranean passage, to the old library. Sculptured out of concrete the gradually descending, and interlinked spaces give visitors unobstructed views over the bookcases and varying spatial experiences.

The Library’s materiality, massing and use of varying levels are a nod to Aalto’s architecture.