Part of the Estate |
I don’t think I’ve made it a secret how much I love the
Barbican Centre and Barbican Estate. There are just as many people who hate the
complex of buildings as there are people like me, though. It was opened in the
1980s, but construction on it started much earlier, not long after the area was
devastated after World War Two. It’s built in the brutalist style (hence the
divide in opinions – a lot of people don’t like that style of architecture, I
personally like some buildings and not others), and is honestly a tad bit
confusing when you’re inside! There are several entrances and most of the
floors of the Barbican Centre are open to the floors above and below in some
areas. I had a little trouble finding my way back to a tube station when I was
leaving, but that was due to me leaving from a different entrance and there
being a large amount of construction in the area. Funnily enough, I found out a
couple of weeks later, I could have just walked back to my dorm! The towers of
the estate are visible from the tube station that was down the street from the
dorm.
On to the library: again, we were split into two groups. In
most of the areas we went there was enough room for our whole class, but it’s a
working library, so it was easier to be quiet with a smaller group. This
library is one of two public libraries in the City of London, the other being
at Guildhall. This library is somewhat unusual due to the fact that it’s in the
square mile: Only 9,000 people live in the City, while 300,000 work and study
there. Because of this, you don’t have to actually live in the City to have a
library card there. It also has more men and 25-45 year olds, likely because of
the businessmen and women who visit.
Part of the music library |
The Barbican Centre is very arts-focused, it’s actually the
largest arts centre under one roof in the world, so they have a large arts and
music library. The arts section of the library is sorted by type of art –
quilting, woodworking, etc. The music library is split between a room with all
of the printed materials (books, periodicals (some of which are fairly rare),
and scores), and CDs and DVDs in the main library area. Interestingly, BluRay
discs aren’t as popular as DVDs. That kinda surprised me, as I’m a big fan of
BluRays (and the special features on them!).
The main part of the library (adult, non-fiction, and YA)
seems pretty similar to what I have at home book-wise. The YA section isn’t
that large, but that’s a space issue, not a choice. One part that was quite a
bit bigger than at home was the travel section – I would have loved to see that
at home before I left for London! There’s a permanent book sale area, which
both libraries I go to have.
There’s also a huge focus on accessibility and helping
people out in this library, but I’ve noticed these both are important in the
UK. Even though the library is located on different levels, it’s still possible
for wheelchair users to get to different areas. There’s also assistance to
those learning new skills and languages, as well as services for the elderly
and homebound.
The children’s library was the last area my group went into.
It was small, but like the YA section, not really by choice. It did have its
own room, which allowed kids to be a little nosier than they would be able to
in the rest of the library. There are a lot of different programs focused on
engaging kids and families, and lots of new clubs as well. The summer reading
challenge was just about to start when we visited, which seemed like it acted
pretty similarly to the summer reading programs at home. This one just had the
perk of a party at Guildhall if you read all the books!
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