The disappearance of sensitive space of reading

 

The paradigm shift we are experiencing today in libraries and digital library path leads us inevitably to change many aspects of our reality closer, professional and daily. Not only are there changes in buildings and the construction of libraries, but these changes are also displayed on the inside, both with regard to furniture and interior design of the same, as well as functions and hosting applications and develop libraries. And this is the case of reading spaces, without a doubt one of the core of today's libraries. A disappearance parallelize the progressive disappearance of the book in the landscape of libraries.

So understand María Luisa López-Glazier when he comments:

The disappearance of the book as a way parallel to other taking place in literacy.Not a sustición technology is an expression of profound change in the understanding of knowledge, authorship, and of course, reading and writing. The 'e-library' express this transformation sociological and respond to such a liquid modernity for which the flexibility and capacity for change are determining values ​​and their own.

And is that the library and reading space in a relationship that went beyond the purely instrumental or material, and ran sensory and emotional spaces, like the sight of all the volumes, the smell and the smell of paper, touch contact with pages ... And, for years has developed a huge range of furniture specifically for reading.Furniture that had a close relationship with architecture since its inception: "Juan de Herrera outlined, behind the library of El Escorial, the drawings of the furniture to adjust their placement and ensure that outcome unique and harmonious with the architecture of a room that is an epistemological program. The interior design of libraries is part of the symbolic expression of the building itself". And is that the building and its furnishings and maintained a special relationship, the one not be understood without the other, and not the other one is without. Form a whole set, coupled in most cases a primary role, that of reading. Now, with the final and permanent eruption, without brake, the digital library building, this intimate relationship is shaky. The furniture, but also the feelings and sensations you experience in reading on paper, are in danger. The furniture in the library reading is obsolete, and attended a progressive redefinition of itself, to adapt to the changing needs of reading. The new reading devices do not require any specific furniture for themselves. But surely, you have to think and create a new physical furniture for library buildings to help us in the approach, the collection and reading all the digital information.

And finish López-Vidriero: "At the moment, we witness the technological transformation of libraries that has been modified and inherent elements: files, tabs, request ballots, machines and copiers has made us familiar with computers and with pen drives where we get the documents and images. Social changes have also altered its architectural design, materials have been simplified, making it transparent, libraries have been opened and have softened their stand as barriers to building attractive and friends (...) But this is modify, adapt, we have not yet reached a new architectural proposal according to this new reality". I disagree in part, agree that we are experiencing a time of change, a transition without clear guidelines, but notwithstanding this, we have some examples that give us clues about how to design libraries of the future, such as the new Library of the UTSA in San Antonio. Now we just have to keep working.