Summary
31°57′18″S 115°51′40″E / 31.9551°S 115.8612°E
The City of Perth Library is a public library service provided by the City of Perth. The library is located on Hay Street, next to the Perth Town Hall.[1] It is part of the redevelopment of Cathedral Square, located between St Georges Terrace and Hay, Barrack and Pier Streets.[2]
Prior to the completion of the current building in 2016, the library had been based at a number of locations, most recently 140 William Street in the Perth CBD.[3]
The City of Perth library is separate in operations from the other major library in Perth, the State Library of Western Australia at the Alexander Library Building.
History edit
The City of Perth Library has, since its inception, been housed in a number of locations. The site is situated where the library had previously been housed in a now demolished building, in the basement.[4]
The earliest predecessor of the library was the Swan River Mechanics' Institute which was established in 1851.[5] The name was changed in 1909 to Perth Literary Institute, and in 1957 the City of Perth renamed and took over the library as the City of Perth Library.[6]
The subsequent buildings were Council House on St Georges Terrace (1963–1995), Law Chambers Building (1995–2012),[7] and 140 William Street (2012–2015).[3]
Current building edit
Kerry Hill Architects were awarded the design tender for a new library in 2011.[8] The City of Perth awarded the $33 million construction contract to Doric Contractors, which began building works in 2013.[9] The library is the first civic building to be built by the City of Perth since the Perth Concert Hall in 1972.[10] Completion was expected by the end of 2014.[11] The new library opened on 1 March 2016.[12]
The library has a circular design with seven floors, glass facades, and stone-clad columns.[13] The building includes a 13-metre-tall (43 ft) vertical garden, the tallest in Perth, with more than 3500 plants.[14] The ceiling features a mural by artist Andrew Nicholls entitled Delight and Hurt Not, depicting the final act of Shakespeare's The Tempest illustrated with Western Australian flora and fauna.
Gallery edit
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Northwest view of the Library -
Level One of the library -
Staircase inside the library -
Tree of Knowledge -
The Library and the State Buildings
References edit
- ^ "New City Library". City of Perth. Archived from the original on 16 July 2014. Retrieved 22 October 2014.
- ^ "Masterplan". Cathedral and Treasury Precinct. Archived from the original on 25 January 2014. Retrieved 22 October 2014.
- ^ a b "Library and History Centre Location & Contact". City of Perth. 2015. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 7 December 2014.
- ^ [1] Alia notes from 2005
- ^ "Advertising". Inquirer. No. 553. Western Australia. 5 February 1851. p. 2. Retrieved 11 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ Jo Darbyshire (2016) Peruse - A History of the City of Perth Library 1851-2016 Perth, City of Perth Library.
- ^ Exact location of the new 2016 library
- ^ "Kerry Hill designs Perth library: first civic building in 35 years". Architecture & Design. Cirrus Media. 5 September 2011. Archived from the original on 22 May 2013. Retrieved 22 October 2014.
- ^ "Doric wins city library build". One Perth. Archived from the original on 10 March 2014. Retrieved 22 October 2014.
- ^ Emery, Kate (24 September 2014). "Library creates new look for city". The West Australian. Archived from the original on 22 October 2014. Retrieved 22 October 2014.
- ^ "Plans unveiled for new Perth library". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 24 April 2013. Archived from the original on 18 May 2013. Retrieved 22 October 2014.
- ^ "New City of Perth Library". City of Perth. Archived from the original on 24 March 2016. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
- ^ "City of Perth Library and public plaza". Doric Group. Archived from the original on 9 March 2014. Retrieved 22 October 2014.
- ^ Baker, Emily (23 September 2014). "Tall order for landscaper". Guardian Express. Archived from the original on 22 October 2014. Retrieved 22 October 2014.
External links edit
- Official website
- City of Perth Library page at the Cathedral Square website