INFO-TECA: A MODERN LIBRARY IN THE DIGITAL ERA

FINAL THESIS

Aristotle University of Thessaloniki 2020

The present thesis, entitled INFO TECA, proposes the renovation of the former Maison Crystal in Thessaloniki’s Nea Paralia into a modern library adapted to the needs of the digital age.

The questions explored in this project concern the form of the new building block, the relationship between the old and the new, as well as the function of the library itself and its role in the digital age.

Information therefore, as a concept was an important source of inspiration for this work On the one hand, it relates to the library as a space since it is the object that is kept and flows into a modern library and, on the other hand, it is information and stimuli that we receive through our senses which help us interpret and understand the world.

Through a historical analysis of the library as a function it is observed that libraries evolve from dark, mysterious, large scale spaces to more luminous, open and social places of interaction with mixed uses. The library is no longer solely dedicated to the book and assumes a more social character. It is gradually transformed into a place of meeting, socializing, and discussing where the information flows, not only through books but also through people who discuss, gather and socialize. Libraries are becoming more open, brighter, closer to the human scale, friendlier and more flexible, while at the same time they incorporate a variety of new uses that are not directly related to reading, such as cafeterias, gaming, workshops, meeting rooms, etc. Of great interest is how the void is used in libraries. In the earlier examples we see that the void is an inactive space but plays an important role as it is much larger than the active space and serves to create the mysterious atmosphere but also to create momentum and a great difference between the human building scale. The size of the void is in turn reduced and the building comes closer to the human scale, however the void still serves to illuminate from above. The void gradually begins to come in contact with the active spaces or to intervene between them and to acquire properties and uses such as light and movement or even to create corners that users occupy spontaneously.

In addition to researching the library as a function, the role of the concept of information in architecture is also explored. If one thinks that despite designing and perceiving three dimensions we actually live in a multidimensional universe from which three dimensions are the only information that our physiology can perceive, process, and manipulate, it would be of great interest to explore the possibility of spaces of higher dimensions and the consequences of this in the design process. Introducing the concept of multidimensional into design results in more information about objects and more ways they connect and interact. This project proposes a space where users experience a new space They can go down, over, around and through the geometries and perceive them differently depending on the light, the transparency and the position of the user The key step, in this project, to achieving these qualities is the use of cubes that intersect intertwine and penetrate each other, creating subspaces that produce different qualities. Through the use of the cube, the most basic geometric shape, as a unit that is multiplied and with simple motions such as movement and rotation, complex geometries emerge But a key parameter is that these cubes always intersect with each other creating sub spaces.

Situated on the Nea Paralia of Thessaloniki, the site is in a transitional zone from the urban network to a natural boundary, the sea. Of particular interest are the boundaries on Nea Paralia as there is a great variety and graduation of the boundaries. The existing building is stripped down and only the load bearing structure is maintained in order to receive the new construction. A contoured landscape is designed, which gradually raises the user at 1 50 level. This landscape does not only serve to the gradual elevation at the ground floor but also creates boundaries and variation of heights and viewing spots