National Library of Tajikistan
Dushanbe, Tajikistan · 2012
The current National Library of Tajikistan is a nine-story building shaped as an enormous open book. A long symmetrical façade frames the principal entrance, while twenty-two sculpted busts of historical, scientific and literary figures establish a ceremonial forecourt. Reading rooms, archives, exhibition areas and conference facilities are distributed through a 167-meter-long structure designed to consolidate the national collection within one major institution. The new building was inaugurated in March 2012, distinguishing its architectural date from the library institution itself, which originated in the early Soviet period.