HUTTROP DISTRICT LIBRARY: A MERRY MELTING POT IN THE RUHR AREA

The Huttrop district library of Essen City Library is one of the locations with the largest media offerings and the highest number of loans. The library had to move because the previous building was no longer available. It found its new home in a vacant supermarket on the city limits of Essen-Steele. The new location is conveniently situated and accessible with ample parking opportunities.The first step was to make the building structurally and architecturally suitable for the new function. How do you turn one large, open space into a unique and inviting library… while staying within a limited budget?

Listening to each other

The includi team organized Design Workshops and user surveys to understand the needs of the mixed audience of Huttrop and the library team.

“In several workshops we worked out a promise with all team members,” explains Anja Flicker, Director of City Library Essen. “The library should be a unique, inviting meeting place. A place that stimulates, inspires and offers diverse opportunities. Everyone is welcome here. Here you can find support, here you can be who you are, here you can feel at home.”

During the Design Workshop, the theme of the library’s visual identity was determined: It should tie in with the industrial Ruhr area of Essen with its rich history, often affectionately called “Ruhrpott”. Furthermore, includi gave architectural advice to strengthen the function of the third place within the building and to physically strip away the former supermarket atmosphere.

Industrial past

Huttrop’s library is a spacious, multipurpose setting with no enclosed spaces except for the offices of the library team. The industrial past comes to life in a modern way via a colorful interior, where both subtle and striking references to the steel and coal industries can be discovered. This creates recognition, a familiar feeling, but also wonder. By stripping walls and ceilings, original stone walls and concrete elements were revealed, creating a raw industrial look. With many metal interior elements, such as the XL black steel bookcase and cocoons made of steel, the library exudes a unique atmosphere.

Cozy and inviting

Upon entering, everyone immediately feels welcome in the cozy coffee bar with the infotheque. Clever layouts create separate zones for different age groups and interests, each equipped with comfortable seating areas, from community tables to comfy cocoons.

“Experience is central to this industrial but homey library landscape,” tells Vera Schneider, Interior Architect at includi. “For example, young people can retreat to a treehouse or a striking, robust cabin in the youth section. Study and workstations, a seating landscape as it were, in front of the new windows strengthen the connection with the outside. This invites passersby to come and take a look inside. Be sure to do so, because there is always something going on here.”

Project credits

Client: Stadtbibliothek Essen
Location: Huttrop, Essen, Germany
Area: 700 m2
Research, Strategy, Design, Art-Direction: includi (team: Vera Schneider, Aat Vos, Hélène IJsselstijn, Jasper Poortvliet, Tessa Wennink, Eunice Ma, Thijs Alberts)
Building partners: Team Stonepark (interior builder), Planungsbüro Bause (architect building)
Photographer: Marco Heyda/includi
includi.com
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