Strathfield Library

The Strathfield Library and Information Centre is built on the same site and replaces the old 1970’s Homebush Library with a dramatic and sculptural modern building designed to maximise public access to information and services. The Library is located centrally within a group of fifteen major schools and has extremely high usage by children and young adults. The open nature of the building’s program is intended to provide an accessible and flexible information and study centre for these users. The internal spaces of the building are laid out around a central atrium space that visually connects the major facilities of the building over both floors. The atrium also acts as a thermal chimney and lies at the heart of the building’s natural ventilation and energy conservation system. A large array of photovoltaic cells is arranged on the building’s roof and provides supplementary power for the Centre’s operation. Although the spaces within the building look inwards towards the internal atrium they are enclosed by an external envelope which is primarily transparent. The layered glazed façade which forms the building’s main street frontage incorporates stepped bay windows and planting areas to create a completely open building with an active and inviting public face.