Video Online - Libraries are undergoing an exciting period of reinvention and experimentation in new as well as renovated buildings. Two recent libraries from the Boston area, one academic and one public, re-imagine libraries as active and welcoming places seamlessly connected to their learning communities – with spaces to collaborate, socialize as well as study, eat, convene, converse and create. Moderator:
Patrick Deaton, Associate Director for Learning Spaces and Capital Management, NCSU Libraries

Panelists:
Maryellen Fitzgibbon, Senior Planner, Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Harvard University
Cliff Gayley, Principal, William Rawn Associates, Architects, Inc.
Anu Vedantham, Director of Learning and Teaching Services, FAS Libraries, Harvard University

Both projects have created memorable places where people want to be: the Pritzker Commons transforming the Cabot Science Library in Harvard University’s Science Center, the Boston Public Library’s Central Branch creating a new vision of public space in the lower four floors of the Johnson Building. The session will explore ways that both libraries have pushed the boundaries of what libraries can be, exploring: new ways of learning through technology-rich environments; transparency and porosity opening libraries to outdoor spaces and pathways; the use of cafes at the front door (a strong statement of welcome, upending outdated rules about food and noise); flexible and reconfigurable spaces full of color; new spatial typologies that reflect how we learn and socialize today. The session will also explore challenges and opportunities in achieving transformation within existing and specifically mid-century modern buildings.