Expansion of the University Library in Graz by Thomas Pucher

At the end of October, the studio of Thomas Pucher won an international competition for the reconstruction and expansion of the university library in Graz, which, with four million volumes, is one of the largest libraries in Styria. In addition, the reconstructed neoclassical building from 1897 will include a lecture hall for 430 students and a total of 650 new study places. Thomas Pucher consciously bets on the contrast between the historical building from the Austro-Hungarian monarchy and the transparent new construction. While the original foyer from the 1970s will be removed, the later extension by Günther Domenig from the 1990s will still be counted in the new project and connected by a glass atrium. After the removal of the structure from the 1970s, a new university square will be created, above which a two-story roof extension with two hundred study places will hover. The protruding glass block creates a covered entrance area, underneath which the main lecture hall is hidden. The entire library will occupy 10,000 m² and the reconstruction will cost 15.5 million euros.

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