Featured in the tenth annual Open House New York (OHNY) architectural tour weekend, October 2012.

 

The library at this primary school is located within the historic 1895 C.B.J. Snyder building on Manhattan’s Upper East Side, facing the neighborhood’s Carnegie Library.

The principal was seeking flexible space with a contemporary flair.

The studio incorporated existing historic elements into a new, contemporary design that created a variety of new spaces where students, teachers, and parents could study, lounge, and discuss.

 

A new high, undulating ceiling with integrated lighting, wood paneling with inbuilt shelving, and poured seamless flooring were introduced in the raw space, leaving its historic aspects intact. 

A stepped niche at the windowed corner became the storytelling area, with low storage for children. Computer tables are situated near the librarian’s desk.

The sequence of spaces is articulated by modular and movable furniture that can be reconfigured easily, providing the client with the desired flexibility.

 

The new discrete LED lighting, the environmentally friendly and healthy materials and technologies throughout the renovated space make this library a bridge between community traditions and contemporary standards.

 

​ This project is part of a transformative series of APT school libraries that are expanding their educational purposes by rebuilding communities through culture.

 

Selected Publications/Exhibits

 

ArchDaily- Public School 158 Bayard Taylor Library – October 2013

Plataforma Arquitectura – Library of the Public School Bayard Taylor – February 2013

CultureNOW – Public School 158 Bayard Taylor Library – December 2012