The site fronts on a
commercial strip on the north, takes in views of the Hollywood Hills, and
slopes down in back to merge with a residential neighborhood. Hard on the front,
soft and green in back, the plan and section reflect concerns about identity,
access, noise, and daylight that dominated community discussions. Entrances
from the street corner and rear parking are given equal importance.

Daylight: Inside, a row
of steel columns supports curved ceilings that expand the volume of the reading
room and maximize reflected light from south-facing skylights high overhead.
Light from a reading court at the end of the main axis offsets the cul-de-sac
quality that haunts buildings with a single entry. Computer stations are tucked
into sound absorptive bamboo tents.

The Strip: The front
engages the passing lights and movement of cars and pedestrians, refracted by
glass block panels in a cranking bay window. Concrete columns rise from a
protective berm bracing the glass and supporting the canopy above- a secondary
structural system that parallels the taller steel framing. The berm replaces
hard-to-maintain planting beds, sloping into a sidewalk of the same color to
link building and pedestrians.

Signs: The front
rises as a billboard with three-dimensional signage bearing the names of the
famous historian dedicatees. Unlike commercial signs, the memorial sign reads
in an evanescent way - clearly in oblique views from the street but only
faintly when viewed straight on.

Mass and Tone: Concrete masonry provides seismic resistance, noise abatement, and
durable finish. The 12”x 12” module and raked joints establish scale and
texture. Its color begins an earthy palette of concrete, metal siding, and
painted steel elements. Inside, block walls and colored concrete paving
continue the public, exterior character of the sidewalk into the library. On
the outside, the block color sets the building off from its commercial
neighbors and looks particularly good in the orange light of morning and
evening when Sunset is most heavily used.

Design Awards:
Design Excellence, City of Los Angeles Cultural Affairs Commission, 2003 Design
Award, Concrete Masonry Association of California
and Nevada,
2004

Photography: Grant Mudford