After a few months of delay due to the Corona pandemic, Oslo’s new main library was put into operation in June 2020. At one of Norway’s most appealing locations, “Deichman Bjorvika … is a purpose building and a signal building, but also a prototype with a fantastic design,” says project manager Per Egil Steen from the building manager for cultural and sports buildings Oslo KF.
The Deichmanske Bibliotek is one of the oldest public libraries in Norway and is the largest public library in the country. It is now the City Library of Oslo, spread over 23 individual libraries.
Located in the district of Bjorvika, between the main railway station and the opera house, the new building with its 13,560m2 functional area, does not only offer generous space for its 1,400,000 pieces of printed media, sound recordings, films and other materials, but also houses many other cultural opportunities such as reading, learning and seminar rooms, gastronomy, craft rooms, a recording studio, a cinema hall, an auditorium, as well as an amphitheatre on the fifth floor, the steps of which are visible at the bottom of the protruding part of the building.
“The building is unique with new innovative solutions and a green profile,” says Victoria Marie Evensen, Business Council. The building corresponds to a passive house standard with a reduction in emissions compared to similar buildings of 50 percent. This was achieved, among other things, through innovative and recycled materials, a new type of ventilation system and seawater cooling.
The energy-efficient luminaires from LMT, for example our PYCA downlights, which are mounted in the honeycombs of the acoustic ceiling, or our MINI Lado Wallwasher, which ensure uniform and glare-free wall lighting, also make a small contribution to this.