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Microlibrary Warak Kayu represents SHAU’s passive climate design, material and typology experimentation for the tropical context. The building is elevated, like a traditional ‘rumah panggung’ (house on stilts) because it does not only function as library but adds value by becoming a community center. The brise soleil is based on the ‘Zollinger Bauweise’ a construction which forms a reciprocal system, resulting in a distinctive slightly shifted diamond pattern. This pattern happens to resemble a local mythical creature ‘Warak Ngendog’ and its dragon-like skin. Hence the name Warak Kayu – meaning Wooden Warak. The building is made entirely from FSC certified wood.

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“We aim to design attractive buildings and cities which are socially and environmentally responsible.”

SHAU Indonesia

This project is located in Semarang, Indonesia.

Semarang is the capital and largest city of Central Java province in Indonesia. It was a major port during the Dutch colonial era, and is still an important regional center and port today.  The city has been named as the cleanest tourist destination in Southeast Asia 

  • Architecture & Interior
  • Semarang
  • Florian Heinzelmann & Daliana Suryawinata
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By elevating the library, various spatial configurations, multiple programs and a wide range of activities can be offered. On the ground, is a large semi outdoor area which can be used for workshops, as well as a wide tribune seating at the entrance for watching presentations or movies, and to grab the kids’ attention: a wooden swing. The ground area is framed by a ring of planter boxes to create a more intimate atmosphere. Upstairs in the library itself, there is a net where kids can lie down, relax and read but also directly communicate with parents and friends in the space underneath. It is important to have this multi-programmatic approach to make the library a popular place, since reading alone is not yet considered a fun activity in the country.

More projects from SHAU Indonesia

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SHAU was established in 2009 as two independent offices in Rotterdam and Munich and serves as common platform. Since 2012 SHAU runs also an office in Indonesia, first in Jakarta and currently in Bandung. The individual offices collaborate on a project basis and combine their extensive working experiences in well-established and internationally-recognized architecture firms where they successfully worked on numerous projects on various scales. We can therefore offer a broad scope of services ranging from urban to architectural project commissions. SHAU is mostly interested in delivering outstanding design solutions while embedding societal as well as environmental concepts in the design process.

  • SHAU Indonesia
  • Bandung-Indonesia

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