The University of Tasmania has announced that its Inveresk Library, designed by John Wardle Architects, is the first new building to open as part of the Northern Transformation Program (NTP), a plan to increase Tasmanian educational attainment by improving the university’s city-based campuses.
Project director Minnie Cade called the library “a critical piece” of the NTP, adding that the new building delivers on two of the program’s commitments: lowering carbon emissions and increasing opportunities for collaboration.
“The library sits at the heart of the campus as a welcoming and inviting space for students, staff, industry partners and community,” she said.
The new building emerged from a process that involved feedback from more than 150 people, including staff, students and members of the community.
The University of Tasmania’s Inveresk Library by John Wardle Architects.
Image:
Anjie Blair
The approach resulted in a design sensitive to the site, with Cade saying it “nestles into the existing fabric of the historic railyard sheds”.
“Carefully located to complete an important corner along the rows of sheds, [the new library building] has a geometry that responds to adjacent forms and roof structures, suggesting that it might have always been there,” Cade said.
In keeping with the library’s collaborative purpose, visitors from the community can sign up for membership and borrow items from the print collection.
Further plans for the NTP include two more new buildings at Inveresk and one at the Cradle Coast campus.
Source: Architecture - architectureau
