Mölndal City Library
When Mölndal City Library relocated to new premises, the objective was to create an open meeting place where everyone is welcome to enjoy both reading and creative activities.
The municipality of Mölndal is located just outside Gothenburg, and population growth there has resulted in several new projects in the city centre. One of these involved the city library being transferred to a newly-built city-centre location.
Fredblad Arkitekter designed both the interior and exterior of the new library, with a focus on creating a light and vibrant space. The large glass façades all but remove the boundary between indoors and outside, while at the same time enticing in visitors. The building extends over two floors, linked by a central staircase that provides visitors with an expansive overview of the entire library. The second floor is home to the young adult section, a special reading and activity corner designed by New Order Arkitektur. The colourful environment and spacious solutions are ideal for group work, video games or quiet individual reading.
A place for interaction
The aim of the new library was to create a venue for interaction and social activities for all ages. There is plenty of space for creative activities such as crafts, theatre and workshops.
“In the light of digitisation many people believe that libraries have had their day. However, we have delivered projects for several libraries and feel that the situation is quite the reverse. Individuals of various ages come here: from students wanting a place to study to new parents coming to enjoy a coffee. Libraries serve an important social function as a meeting place,” says Anna Mark-Ljungqvist, Sales Representative and Project Manager at Input interior, which was responsible for procurement, delivery and installation of the library’s interior fittings.
Sustainability for the future
The building project has been characterised by sustainable choices, with architecture, materials and interior design that can stand the test of time.
“In this project it was important to ensure that the library is sustainable for the future, and it must therefore be possible to modify the interior design to suit future needs and adapt it to digital working methods. This means, for example, that seats and tables have been equipped with electric sockets and USB ports,” explains Anna.
