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It’s opening day, so I can forgive the crowds and the live band. But not the lack of reading rooms (not a sofa, not some weird pod, not a single table in a glass rectangle). Of course, you would have to actually go to a library to know that the READING ROOM is the heart of one. But at least we have game terminals (with speakers cranked on max) and a coffee shop. Plus that ugly, open-air design will amplify every snort and fart. It’s not a library and fails at being a mall and when the novelty wears off, it will just be another burden. I really hope this monstrosity ruined the careers of those who designed it and I wish we could sue the people who signed off on it. Democracy is a joke and I’m ashamed to live in Halifax. —Guy who now goes to the Dal library to read
This article appears in Dec 11-17, 2014.
So, “Democracy is a joke ” because……You can’t liquidate people for doing things you don’t like? You’re either a fymynyst or an anarchist, either way, Lenin, Stalin, Mao and Che are all vigorously nodding in approval.
I’ve a pretty good oidea what you’re getting for Christmas:
https://images.search.yahoo.com/images/vie…
Ya, since this public edifice is aesthetically displeasing to you personally, it’s time to question it all, man.
Shush! Quit bitching so loud! Can’t you see I’m trying to read!
THE DAL LIBRARY
An excellent choice. While I have never seen the new library’s reading room I can vouch for the fact that the one at Dal has class. Not that I’ve ever read there – I was always at my desk up in the stacks. Grad Studies and all that.
Avatar #108: Victorian Band Dagger
A pleasure as always,
Cheerio!
The library has study and reading areas on the 3rd and 4th floors. On the fourth floor they also have a line of study carrels along one wall. A person can be as isolated as they want. Maybe folks like the OB need to spend a little more time getting to know the place before disparaging it. A quick run through on opening day doesn’t quite suffice.
I also wonder whether any of the negative commenters took the time to attend any of the many public consultation sessions to plan the new library. If not, it’s like when there’s an election. If you don’t vote then you are giving others permission to choose a government for you so don’t be all shocked and indignant about what they choose.
haha, this guy is so miserable it’s almost comical.
LOL! You hear that everyone, the only building to bring global attention to Halifax due to its unique design, and this jackoff is “ashamed”!
Seriously, it’s not our fault the DAL architecture department rejected your application. Go back to your corner in the dark brutalist soviet era DAL library. The public can do without more cranky bitches.
I gotta agree wit OB. This decision to spend tax dollars on a departure lounge wasn’t very democratic. Nobody axed us what we wanted our money spent on. I would much rather see a free gym dat fat broke people can go to for free. Bring the outdoor gyms back in the spring, something we can use. Quit building liberries with no books!
^^^ “Nobody axed us what we wanted our money spent on. “
Public consultations began back in 2008 and continued for several years. The new library is exactly what the public asked for. How much more could they have done? This thread is getting a bit ridiculous – even for the Chairman! .
http://halifaxcentrallibrary.ca/building-design/public-consultations/
Newby question. When I cut and paste a link (as above^^) it doesn’t show up as a live link . What am I doing wrong? Thanks in advance.
get your link ready copy it, write your thoughts then paste the link, but i am a luddite, so perhaps others will be more helpful http://education-portal.com/cimages/multim…
I’m usually no fan of modernist architecture. Seeing another building go up with a “playful” design and a skin comprised entirely of glass should bum me out, but I sort of like the new library. Halifax has a shortage of nice public spaces and this corner (one of the more prominent ones in the city) had nothing but a parking lot on it for ages.
I’m surprised the OP favours the Dalhousie library. This brutalist monstrosity was ugly and unlovable from the moment it went up 40 years ago and its just as bad today. The decision to hollow out the centre and put the windows facing inward means it’s always dark and cramped (the exposed concrete and cinderblocks enhance the dreariness). Ever wonder why Dalhousie never features the Killam on postcards and calendars?
If only we could still build like this:
http://pixels.com/featured/reading-room-of…
I love the new library, in ways I didn’t think I would. It’s doing splendidly what it was designed to do: to bring the public into a space for the exchange of ideas. It’s a place for leisure as well as for efficient study and research – it works on a level that most university libraries can only dream of. When a trip to the library is such a pleasure, it makes reading and learning and engaging all that more attractive.