“September is the January in fashion”
–Candy Pratts Price, The September Issue (Lionsgate Films, 2009)
Just as while no matter how the fashions in the pages of GQ and Vogue may change we all still need a shirt to put on every morning, so too do library design trends evolve even as ALSC’s Big Hairy Audacious Goal of libraries being recognized as vital to all children and the communities that support them remains timelessly true.
One community that clearly does recognize this and loves its library is Chicago’s Chinatown. On August 29th, thousands of neighbors came together to celebrate their Chicago Public Library that replaced a very well-used storefront facility. This new 16,000-square-foot feng shui-influenced building is phenomenal, and was designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, the firm responsible for the Sears (oops, I mean Willis) Tower, One World Trade Center, and the tallest buildings in Singapore, Beijing, and Dubai. Chinatown’s awesome children’s area integrates the Every Child Ready to Read @ Your Library, 2nd edition, practices of Talking, Singing, Reading, Writing, and Playing into the shelves and furniture and proudly emblazons them on the wall in very special art by Steve Musgrave.
This is, of course, merely one example out of thousands of amazing, inspiring, functional, and fun libraries for kids across the planet, and I’m elated to announce that my Charlemae Rollins President’s Program at the 2016 ALA Annual Conference will explore library spaces for children. Co-chairs Elizabeth McChesney, Director of Children’s Services at Chicago Public Library, and Christy Estrovitz, Youth Services Manager at San Francisco Public Library (which has its own wonderful Chinatown branch) are hard at work putting together an inspiring program that will share the latest design trends and timeless tricks from around the world for making all libraries (regardless of size and/or budget) ones that engage kids and celebrate space as one of the most important services we provide to young people.
Why am I mentioning next June when it’s only September (or “January,” as the opening quote may have us believe)? So we can do something we do so well in ALSC: collaborate! As I visit ALSC members and our library spaces this year I invite you to follow along on Twitter using #ALSCtour as I’ll be sharing ideas and images I discover in Arizona, California, Colorado, DC, Florida, Germany, Illinois, Indiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Ohio, Puerto Rico, Texas, and Wisconsin. (And who knows where else I may pop up!) I also hope you’ll participate by sharing images of your own spaces and how they spark joy in the lives of children and their families by using #ALSCprez on Twitter and Instagram and following the “Children’s Libraries” board on ALSC’s Pinterest page.
See you soon!