He was not travelling, but only describing a circumference, [...]; he was a solid body, traversing an orbit around the terrestrial globe, according to the laws of rational mechanics.
Jules Verne - Around the World in Eighty Days
A ship waiting to set out. Stuck in the heart of Varna, the new library lifts the sails to start navigating. That's the soul of the project. The ship can't stop looking forward and being shaped and pushed by the wind to infinity, toward the sea.
A library which has potentially the ability to go out, to leave, to explore and to come back, spreading knowledge.
The space takes shape and regenerates with order and rationality; at the same time, it overcomes its borders and design limits, looking for a new brave print. The external skin protects the mainmast, the bookcase, which with its fastened rhythm grows along the height of the building. This mainmast is rarely shown to the audience, preserving the willingness to treasure and the willingness to observe the sea and the land. Sea and land are mixed generating the pavement with a strong texture which extends to the external skin of the shell. Shades and signs costantly and obsessively chase each other during the day. During the night, instead, they make way for a colossal lantern floating over the Varna's sea.
Ground level built-up area: 1620 sq m Total built-up area of the overground levels: 21440 sq m Total area of landscaped areas in the range of the competition plot and the building: 6420 sq m Number of parking spots in the underground garage: 264
