Phil Freelon Design Competition Brief 2024

ic Continuum

The 2049 Library

WALKER O'BRIEN, NOVELIST

Essential civic space

Throughout time, libraries have preserved the world’s knowledge and heritage — informing subsequent generations and fostering new ideas. Today, libraries are no longer the hushed, hallowed temples of bookbound knowledge. Many of their traditional services have been usurped by the information economy, accessed through a simple tap on the ubiquitous mobile devices we carry. And yet, civic libraries are more relevant than ever. These critical intellectual and social places are grounded by a purpose to preserve and authenticate information exchange, but they have moved beyond mere places where knowledge is stored and beliefs are debated to become community ‘kitchens’ for experimentation, creation, and production. In this way, they are central to an informed, creative, and innovative citizenry—turning passions into careers and voices into actions.

The civic library may not be what you think

Signals of change

Foresight is about envisioning many different plausible futures. These can be positive, negative, strange, or astounding. Futurists—individuals who systematically study the future and make predictions based on trends—are often guided by small, almost imperceptible signs of change in the present. Just as generations of designers dreamed and innovated in the past, contemporary designers must continue to boldly envision new structures and systems. New ideas, technologies, and habits that diverge from our understanding of the world today, will one day define our future.

“When we say something was unimaginable, it usually means we failed to point our imagination in the right direction.”

JANE MCGONIGAL FUTURIST, AUTHOR, AND GAME DESIGNER

Design Forum : Critical Public Spaces Watch the video

New dimensions

Civic libraries are evolving - quickly. Virtual access to information, has radically transformed how we work, communicate, and connect to one another. So why, despite predictions that the Internet would kill physical libraries, are they more active than ever? Simply stated: evolution. The library quickly pivoted in response to societal needs, shifting from a passive collection of books and media to an active space for experience, inspiration, and gathering. In other words, the library transformed from “collection to connection.”

Libraries today are more dynamic—they have become places for people to interact.

As this article from the National Endowment for the Humanities illustrates, civic libraries are non-judgmental, inclusive places that challenge hierarchical and authoritative spatial solutions that:

‒ offer safe spaces for debate

‒ nurture civic and social literacy

‒ unleash creativity through access to free technology

‒ transmit culture through storytelling

‒ serve as frontline responders in natural disasters

‒ provide shelter from the opioid crisis ↑

A significant framework for the future of the library is The Four Space Model introduced by Danish information scientists and used worldwide. The model consists of four different but overlapping spaces – the inspiration space, the learning space, the meeting space, and the performative space that support the following four goals: Experience, Involvement, EmpowermentInnovation

These spaces are not “rooms” in the physical sense, but possibilities that can be filled by both the library’s physical and cyber spaces. Learn more about this model here.

Learn more

The best way to predict the future is to create it

What does civic literacy mean and how can design support it?

Willlibrariesbe sustainabilityadvocates?

Whatinformation willwecrave? Are design firms dream factories?

Whatistheevolutionoftheciviclibrary?

Are civic libraries first responders?

What will the major challenges be in 2049? (Environmental, social, health, technological, and economic. What will our Living Design Drivers be?)

What is the context you will be designing within? (Imagine major climate, social, technological, and economic challenges of the future)

Ifspaceisaservicewhatdoesthatmeanfordesign?

Is the library the last space to think independently and freely?

How can we integrate technology to unleash users’ creativity?

Howcanweensureourspacesinvitepeopleto igniteexperimentationandcreativity?

Whatinfrastructurewillallowpeopleto ‘checkout’brandnewrealities?

Whatwilllibrariescollect?

Whenknowledgeisaccessible everywherewhatcanONLYbe experiencedintheciviclibrary?

Is there a way to design public spatial experiences for everyone? By designing differently can architecture open our senses to new possibilities, new identities, and new understanding?

How can we design safe spaces for debate where diverse voices can be heard?

The challenge

Develop a thesis that illustrates a shift in the civic library in response to a global challenge.

While all competition participants are required to develop a design thesis, HOW that thesis is applied and proven architecturally is determined by your team. Think beyond today's notion of the library typology - what is next? For example, you might focus on the library of well-being, the library of resilience, the library of justice, or the library of misinformation.

Many of the best ideas sound absurd at first, so take a creative approach. Be bold. Provoke. Your design concept should clearly support your thesis.

This year, we invite you to picture the year 2049 and re-imagine civic space through the lens of

Select a scale.

Present an architectural, interior design, or urban design intervention that describes your thesis through a clear and compelling spatial solution. Entrants must focus within one of three scales, and remember, there are no limitations to the possible design outcomes.

Small ― Interior Scale

Illustrate your ideas for an interior environment, experience, or product that unleashes the full potential of the 2049 library.

Consider:

How can an existing building on an iconic site be retrofitted to support the future needs of the city and its inhabitants?

How can existing conditions be reprogrammed for new and exciting uses?

Can your future-focused thesis be translated down to a series of episodic moments or dynamic special adjacencies?

How will an existing framework be reprogrammed and appropriated for new thinking and exploration?

03.

Medium ― Building Scale

Design an architectural intervention that heralds a new era of innovation and creativity - engaging the surrounding community and urban framework alike.

Consider:

How would you engage with and re-design this city block to support your future thesis?

How much of the existing building/context would you preserve?

What would you do differently on this site, theoretically starting afresh?

Is there a regenerative or resilient narrative that speaks to the surrounding area?

Large ― Urban Scale

Create an urban design intervention or experimental solution that overcomes a 2024 public space challenge put forth in your thesis.

Consider:

How can our experience of the city be enhanced through your thesis?

What will the new urban mechanism be that draws people to explore and share ideas?

What is the impact of library on the social and civic fabric on the community and city?

How would we make this library to be more accessible and thereby inclusive?

How does this library evolve as a connector to the community 10, 20, 50 years from now?

Design, illustrate, and share your solution.

Be intentional in your process and purposeful in your outcomes. Think differently on how you represent your ideas - what media would best convey your thesis? This includes illustrating a commitment to our Living Design Framework — think holistically about conceptual clarity, beauty & poetry, research & innovation, resilience & regeneration, health & wellbeing, community & inclusion, and technology & tectonics. Consider how these seven lenses might have evolved to respond to 2049 challenges.

See the full submission requirements on page 15. 02.

Scenario city

Ubiquitous with the information economy, San Francisco is a microcosm of both global challenges and opportunities. Like many metropolitan areas, the city is seeking solutions to a number of widespread insecurities like climate change, inequality, and housing affordability. This competition asks you to imagine San Francisco in 2049. Consider how the city - and its challenges - may have changed over two decades. What current issues have been solved? What new obstacles is the city navigating? Use your proposed context to inform your design thesis.

“The San Franciso Bay Area has always had an ephemeral quality that expresses the fact that this was an instant metropolis whose development has been fueled by constant demographic migration and economic innovation. It is a place of composites, of individuals, and seekers of collective solutions, of capital-native families, and of a diverse ethnic intermixture from around the world. Not surprisingly, the construction of the region’s physical identity has been a source of great creativity and conflict. The social dynamics of the San Francisco Bay Area have always uplifted and unsettled its architecture.”

ARCHITECTURE

OF SAN FRANCISCO

BAY AREA : A HISTORY & GUIDE

MAIN LIBRARY

FULTON PLAZA

UN PLAZA

CIVIC CENTER PLAZA

MARKETSTREET

LARKIN STREET

HYDE STREET

8TH STREET

GROVE STREET

McALLISTER STREET

The Civic Center of San Francisco

The site: San Francisco main public library

Currently, the San Francisco Library system comprises 27 branches serving approximately 870,000 people citywide. The system's main library building at 100 Larkin borders the city's Civic Center Plaza and the downtown commercial district. Designed by Pei Cobb Freed & Partners and SMWM, the 377,000 sqft library opened to the public in 1996.

Competition teams are asked to select from one of three building scales within the existing selected site boundaries and develop design solutions to address a proposed future library challenge. Participants are encouraged to address the existing main library structure, but it is up to you to determine the size of your proposed program, impact of intervention, and editing of the existing site.

Legend

Interior Scale: Main Library

Building Scale: Main Library and Fulton Square

Urban Scale: Neighborhood Boundary

Neighborhood Districts

Muni Light Rail Station

Blue Circle : BART Line Station

San Francisco City Hall

Asian Art Museum

War Memorial Opera House / Herbst Theatre

UC Law San Francisco

San Francisco Chronicle

San Francisco Centre

San Francisco Federal Building

Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Assumption

Goals

The goals outlined below should keep you focused as you develop your ideas.

Present a compelling design intervention at a singular scale (either interior design, architecture, or urban design) that provides a strong futuristic narrative on the evolution of the library typology. The choice must be justified by your thesis and have a clear relationship to your futures thinking.

Create precedents that could be translated into other communities around the world.

Incorporate creative planning approaches and provocative concepts.

Illustrate the Living Design drivers that informed your concept.

Details

Submissions

A 16:9 ratio, digital book containing all 2d and 3d visuals required to communicate your ideas, along with a title and explanatory text (150-word min, 500-word max). Your book should not exceed 5 pages and should be single pages, oriented in landscape format.

Use the InDesign template provided in the Assets folder. Submissions must be anonymous and therefore can not include individual names or studio locations.

Save your book in PDF format, naming it with your project title and the term “book” (i.e., title_book.pdf). PDF files must be no larger than 10 MB.

Save your hero/main image in JPG format, naming it with your project title and the term “hero” (i.e., title_hero.jpg). JPG files must be no larger than 5 MB.

When submitting your entry online, you will be asked to enter:

‒ Entry Name

‒ Team members

‒ Two sentence description of your big idea

‒ Explanatory text that appears in your book.

Make sure to hit “submit” in the app when you are finished.

Shortlisted teams

If you are shortlisted – we are asking participants to do a short 10 minute presentation to the firm, followed by 5 minutes of Q&A per team.

Award criteria

Jurors will be asked to rate each competition entry on four factors:

‒ How well the design supports your thesis

‒ The strength of the design concept

‒ The clarity and the professionalism of the submission – specifically the aesthetic and narrative content

‒ The Living Design acumen displayed in the development of the design concept

Prizes

First Place: $10,000

Second Place: $6,000

Third Place: $4,000

Merit Awards: $1,000 Submit here ⇒

Submission Deadline

Sunday, February 25, 2024

by midnight in your time zone.

Winners Announced

May 2024

Resources

READ

SHL's Competition Best Practices

Living Design Framework

The Future Thinker’s Dilemma

The Complicated Role of the Modern Public Library

The Four Spaces of the Public Library

The Human Library—Borrow A Person Instead Of A Book

Library of Things: When libraries offer more than books

Sharing Economy Welcome to the Experience Economy

WATCH

Design Forum: Strategies for Succes

Watch the recording of the Design Forum. to learn valuable content on how to get started, and organizing your time over the three days.

Design Forum: Critical Public Spaces

Hear from firmwide leaders on libraries.

Phil Freelon, A Personal History

Phil Freelon, On Our Way

Phil Freelon, Building a Legacy

99% Invisible Episode 346 Palaces for the People

Re-imagine the Future

Let Curiosity Lead

ASSETS

3D Urban Model (3DM)

3D White Box Model (3DM, RVT)

Site Scan (Matterport)

InDesign Digital Book Template

Download the files ⇒

“I have worked through my career as an architect to create environments that are uplifting, inspiring, and set the tone for sharing knowledge and facilitating cultural exchange. You see, I believe that the built environment— that’s buildings and landscapes—can and should contribute in a positive way to the lives of everyday people. Beautiful architecture should be accessible to all.”

—PHIL FREELON

About the mark:

The mark is inspired by a simple graphic Phil created: a pyramid. Comprised of triangles connected at an apex, it symbolizes Phil’s influence on the cultural dimensionality of design. Phil united diverse voices and brought a higher perspective to the issues. Cultural discovery and the exchange of knowledge were important to Phil.

The symbol reminds us to search, as Phil did, for viewpoints that have been historically under-represented in design solutions. In his honor, we look for ways to uplift the lives of everyday people.

Lasting legacy

The competition is named in honor of our late friend and colleague Phil Freelon. Phil was a lifelong champion of beautiful, democratic design—of architecture that honors humanity. He was one of the most influential architects in recent history, and one of North America’s most beloved. He passed away in July 2019.

Over his 42-year-long career, Phil broke down socioeconomic and cultural barriers by designing places that express the spirit of community, promote cultural equity, and spur positive social change. He stood for everything our annual design competition stands for. And every year, he was an active and enthusiastic reviewer of the competition’s entries. Phil’s contributions helped make our annual tradition even stronger, our firmwide design culture even more robust.

Today, the Phil Freelon Design Competition reminds us of our shared values, and ensures that Phil’s influence on our firm, our culture, and our work will live on. We encourage you to take advantage of this unique opportunity, and look forward to seeing what you design.