Community Building
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Client
Calgary Public Library
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Location
Calgary, Alberta
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Sector
Cultural
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Discipline
Wayfinding, Experiential Graphics
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Architect
Snøhetta and DIALOG
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Photography
Jason Dziver
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Awards
SEGD Merit Award Chicago Athenaeum Good Design Award Graphis Design Annual Silver Award
A Welcoming Environment
Because the space is so large and the clientele so varied, the library needed signage that could be intuitively understood by every visitor, including children. Entro’s solution creates a cohesive experience across the library, but also differentiates between each of its spaces and resources.
The signage continues the use of the hexagonal shapes from the façade, creating a continuity between the architectural design and navigation. To better integrate with the open concept layout and soaring ceilings, we minimized suspended and wall-mounted displays. We also wanted to avoid imposing on floor space with free-standing signs, and so created designs that worked well on columns, shelves, and across vertical orientations.
The library needed signage that could be intuitively understood by every visitor, including children. Playful graphics encourage visitors of all ages to explore the library's intuitive vertical orientation.
A Place for Storytelling
Readers are guided from genre to genre by a colour-coded signage system that is supplemented by simple and playful graphics. Placing the signs directly on the shelving allows for easy flexibility as the collections grow and the community’s tastes change.
A similar colour and graphic system is used to direct visitors to different sections of the library. Whether someone is attending a show at the performing arts centre or just looking for the nearest washroom, finding their way is as simple as following a certain colour or image.
The system’s adaptability even allows the signs to become part of the service itself. The signs along the “Calgary’s Story” area, which offers a historical look of the community, incorporates images that both identify the collection and serve as an introduction to the city’s story.
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600,000
Items can be found in Calgary's Central Library.
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1,000,000
People visited the Library during the first seven months.
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240,000
Square feet make up the 5-story building, which features a performance hall, café, and Indigenous art installations, as well as digital learning labs, recording studios, and children’s early learning centres.
The new Calgary Central Library proves that in a digital age, public libraries are more important than ever before. Architecture, materials, environmental graphics, and programming combine to inspire a sense of discovery, inclusion and history.
Learn more about Calgary Public Library here.
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