The Research Library of South Bohemia in České Budějovice

The study part of the South Bohemian Science Library is located in the building of the former museum from 1975, the library has been located here since 1990. Despite ongoing modifications, we encountered a basic problem: lack of space for free selection. The implementation of the project made it possible to create a space for the placement of the living fund of the study library (more than 100,000 volumes) in a free selection with the appropriate background and equipment (study and rest places, access to the Internet, databases, etc.).

The intention of the project was to create a space for free choice by combining the newly built extension and the reconstructed 1st above-ground floor of the existing building. The winning design emerged from an architectural competition and, in addition to the requirements of library operation, had to be based on the conditions of historic preservation, the building is located in the protection zone of the city’s historic preservation. The winning proposal included an extension in the form of a “levitating” one-story addition, which is connected to the original building only at the point of the former entrance.