Photo © Bill Fritsch
From a finish perspective, specifiers can match these products to virtually any school, university, or organization brand or color scheme. Custom printing options add logos and mascot designs to the roster for the ultimate show of school spirit. Classic wood looks add warmth and character while appealing to environmentally conscious students. Graphic patterns create unique installations and add dimension to the ceiling.
While colors and graphics provide a distinctive aesthetic, some buildings still require white acoustical ceiling panels for smoother, more sophisticated visuals. This is exactly the look designers working on the revamped Kitchener Library, Ontario, Canada, were aiming for.
Historic library with a unique ceiling design
LGA Architectural Partners was tasked with preserving the mid-century design of the Main Branch Public Library in Kitchener. One of the country’s fastest-growing communities, Kitchener is known for its universities and high-tech industry. Built in 1962, the library was showing the effects of everyday wear and tear, reaching an age at which its major systems and components were in need of a replacement.
The librarians tasked LGA Architectural Partners to preserve and expand the original structure while making it sustainable, accessible, and elegantly robust, a must for a building serving more than 100,000 cardholders. They also asked the building’s design support the transforming library experience.
“The way libraries have developed from quiet, solemn reading and research spaces to active, engaging public environments meant we needed to change the way the library would look, feel, and be used moving forward,” said José Castel-Branco, associate, LGA Architectural Partners.
Photos © CertainTeed
The design wrapped the original library with a high-efficiency curtain wall featuring operable windows, thereby preserving the building’s iconic image while upgrading its performance. The glass opens the interior to natural sunlight and air and converts the main reading room into a ‘front porch’ that encourages community engagement at the street level.
This front porch is also the new design star of the building, featuring a geometric ceiling that looks like folded origami. The installation harkens back to the building’s original ceiling that was removed in previous renovations.
“We felt so strongly about bringing this iconic design element back to life that we quoted it in the redesign of the reading room,” explained Castel-Branco. “We were going to add new lighting and acoustical elements to the plenum regardless, but this grand space deserved justice.”
Castel-Branco directly worked with a ceiling manufacturer to specify ultra-smooth fiberglass acoustical panels for the reading room. The look mimics the original ceiling and incorporates twinkling fiber-optic lights in the shape of the Andromeda constellation. Additionally, the panels help manage acoustics while providing a quiet and relaxing, yet visually stunning space.
The same panel type was specified for the stacks. However, these were installed in a traditional flat pattern. Groupings of panels were interspersed with drywall and applied to areas requiring acoustic management.
“I tend to believe in one-stop-shopping,” said Castel-Branco. “If you can specify one material or product across a space, it provides design continuity and cuts down on confusion. It is also easier for the installation team and the facility manager who needs to maintain the space.”
Throughout the rest of the library, the design team used elegant but durable materials such as stone, walnut, concrete, and glass—matching the previous palette while giving the library a fresh face. The result is an authentic, comfortable, and flexible place ready to offer enriching experiences for a community operating on the forefront of the digital age.
