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Architects: Basi Atelier
- Area: 105 m²
- Year: 2022
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Photographs:Nguyen Dao Thu Linh
Text description provided by the architects. Kafka Library was built with one simple wish: to bring books closer to the people of Basi - a small town on the outskirts of Tra Vinh, where “study” is an uncommon word, and “read” is even stranger. For that reason, unlike other libraries where books are kept in an enclosed environment and treated lightly for preservation, Kafka Library was designed with the comfortability of readers at the utmost, allowing everyone to experience books in their most natural habitat.
The library lies in an evergreen garden in the suburbs of Tra Vinh City. With a pop of orange in its entire exterior facade, the building is easy to spot from afar and balanced with the greenery of its surroundings.
The building consists of three blocks: The biggest block—where all the books are stored—is the main reading area, which can also be used for community activities. Two smaller blocks adjacent to the main one include a pantry, kitchen, toilet, and two tiny rooms for anyone who wants to experience life at a library.
Built with naturally oriented principles, many elements of Kafka Library are created from recycled material. The entire door and window system of the building were thrifted from all over Tra Vinh; the shingles used for the library’s roof were collected from other buildings in the area and hand-washed with the help of volunteers; the wooden stair in the main block was collected from the dismantling of a house nearby. During the day, the whole library is naturally lit thanks to the transparent roof and windows in every facade. Furthermore, the atmosphere inside the library is always cool with the help of a lotus pond in the front yard and the trees surrounding it.
The architects wish everyone who comes to this place would be able to experience a dynamic reading space—in which books are not the only thing to be “read” but also nature through the rusticity of the materials, the air flowing through the building, and the sunlight dancing on the shelves. Kafka Library was completed and bought to be used in the summer of 2023, with the help of local Kh’mer workers and volunteers worldwide.
