Second office. The British Library

c15 years after writing about the ingenious top-down build methodology used on the then under-construction British Library for my undergraduate study, I finally made time to visit the now completed building.

Designed by Sir Colin Wilson this modernist idyll sits back from the perpetual rush of the Euston road. Its hard lines are attenuated by unfashionable red brick that give form to an urban ship buoyed against the recently renovated and relinked St. Pancras station.

Standing in the forecourt space I was initially underwhelmed expecting to be awed, especially given her size. The building did not impose itself but on reflection, why should it. The exterior space should support the needs of the visitors and their activity. I imagine this to be a lunchtime salvation in the warmer days for local workers and patrons who would be able to enjoy the feeling of calm space free from the office.

Upon entering the atrium the story changes. The layered slanting ceiling runs away rising to its height introducing an expanse of calm order where one immediately feels a guest in the imagination of a master craftsman. And it just gets better.

The artificial lighting is blended with the natural light to create a peaceful, uplifting environment with variances throughout that turn up and down the intensity so patrons can situate themselves in a space that most suits their preference.

Wilson’s understanding of the purpose of the building as a busy library and community hub is evident everywhere. His sensitivity for this makes using it not only easy but pleasurable and brings people together in serendipitous natural collisions. A lunch table is often occupied by people previously unacquainted, which is how i happened to have a surprising conversation with an author Laurence Shorter.

There is a good vibe to the place and for a public space in central London this is not easy to achieve. It is the kind of space i remember fantasising about when i was freelancing and would make, in fact it probably is, a wonderful remote office especially as they have recently opened up the broadband wifi connection.

^ Restaurant and working space at the British Library