The Windlands Library

The library has been designed to appear as if woven from living trees, as a tribute to the importance of trees in this life - they provide our shelter, the walls of our libraries, the paper for the books within our libraries, and the very air we breathe as we read those books.  The library is circular in construction, with a front entrance designed as a natural archway within a giant tree facade.  Four carved trees will be placed at the compass points of the library, with a structure of carved branches which bend slightly inward as they arch over the roof.  The roof will be centered with a clear dome encircled with panes in varying shades of green to admit light into the central conservatory, which will comprise the inner circle of the library.  A hidden lattice will be constructed twelve inches from the outer walls and will be covered with vines and climbing plants, which will be encouraged to grow upwards into the branches of the carved trees, providing a natural canopy of greenery for the artificial trees.  Rain gutters from the roof will be hidden behind the lattice and drained away through underground pipes.  There will be four arched windows in the outer walls, centered between the four carved trees, made to appear to be natural openings within the central tree.

 The interior of the library will consist of two circles, one within the other.  The inner circle will be a conservatory/courtyard, centered with a large tree growing beneath the dome, surrounded by plants, shrubbery, benches and statuary.  The courtyard will be visible from throughout the library through a series of arched windows in the inner wall, and one central access door.

 The windows viewing the courtyard will be interspersed with wood paneling to a suitable height, at which point the wall will become all glass, circled on the library side by a reading balcony accessed by two circular staircases.  The balcony floor will be a grating to allow light to filter downward, and the balcony will be furnished with comfortable reading chairs.

 Bookshelves will line the outer walls between the windows, with additional books in the basement research area, which will be accessed via an elevator (for handicapped use).  The basement area will be segmented into shelving and study areas. 

There will be two reference desks, one at the front and rear doors, each equipped with a reference computer.  The rear desk will be equipped with a small copy center, with copier, fax, etc. for gathering information from national resources.   The director's office will be located on the main floor, situated next to one of the out-facing windows, with mostly-glass walls and a glass door.  The library itself will be two stories tall, with the library ring being 30' across, and the courtyard being 30' in diameter, giving the library a total diameter of 90'.

The library will be connected to the chapel via an open path bordered by small trees which will eventually roof the path.  This path will lead from the rear door of the library, where there will be small alcove displaying a variety of books which visitors may wish to take to the chapel for quiet reading and meditation.