Category: Library

People today devote most of their time to priorities such as socializing, using the computer, and engaging in leisure activities; moreover, a 2017 survey about American time use shows that “individuals ages 15 to 44 read for an average of 10 minutes or less per day” (Thibodeaux). Therefore, Neil Gaiman and Chris Riddell created the graphic essay “Why We Need Libraries” from The Guardian to showcase the importance of reading and going to the library. They point out the fact that “Reading for pleasure is one of the most important things one can do” and that “if others see us reading, we show that reading is a good thing” (Gaiman 16). Reading is an essential habit since it improves our liberal skills and acts as a protest if performed in public.

Gaiman states that “Everything changes when we read” (Gaiman 3). The whole process of reading changes our mood. The moment we enter a library, all our senses get worked up involuntarily; the sight of organized books; the smell of paper, and the sound of nothingness. We get to choose a book that speaks to us then create our own world within it, and when we finish reading, we feel this rush of euphoria and satisfaction. All this experience transforms the way we develop ideas and shapes our brains into more complex ones. A Stanford University research even shows that blood flow increases in our brain when we read for pleasure. This finding further concludes that our liberal and cognitive skills get enriched the more we read.

The writer mentions how we should support libraries and protest their closure. Protesting is a way that many people use to raise awareness and fight for their cause; they all stand together in public and shout in unity to bring others to take action and do the right thing. Nevertheless, although it is good to fight for libraries verbally, I believe that reading in the open in front of others acts as a protest. It portrays a silent individual protest because when we see others read, we see how good it is; we see that no matter how busy people’s days can be, they can still read in public environments and savor the reading. This encourages us, the viewers, to do it too, resulting in a chain of reaction that spreads through society the more people join their cause. Since libraries are the primary source of physical books, getting a book to read from a certain library enhances its business, eliminating the idea of its closing.

Libraries are very copious and diverse. There are more than 2.6 million libraries around the world, with some that have survived for centuries. The biggest library houses more than 162 million books; however, the amount of visitors keeps decreasing. All these numbers lead to the conclusion that libraries have been there in the past and will always be there, and I think it is a shame that fewer people access these historic places. To combat this issue, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum works on many projects that encourage people to read more such as naming 2016 the Year of Reading and opening the largest library in the region. He states that ‘The human mind is the center of development and the book is the tool used to renew the mind. A nation can never grow without a renewed mind and a lively, knowledgeable spirit’ (Sheikh Mohammad).

All people from different ages and places are welcome to visit libraries, and all of them have one cause: to read and get educated. Libraries have a very welcoming environment as Gaiman says, ‘libraries are about freedom’ (Gaiman 10); therefore, we should fulfill the libraries’ cause by going in and enjoying the books they provide us with. After all, we could have never reached today’s knowledge and technology if books were never there, so we cannot just disregard them now; especially when we benefit from the experience too. Whether we read digital or physical books, the most important part is reading. However, no matter how simple technology makes getting information, we should always make an effort from time to time to go to the library and read physical books.

From young age I have been travelling to France, I have always loved the capital city Paris as do many people for its architectural elements and its richness in character and history. I will be exploring themes in the BNF Richelieu Site. I came across this library not having much knowledge about it mainly because of the way it looks from the outside compared to the inside. I have passed this building many times with my family or with my friends and I have never thought to ask what this building actually is. I was pleasantly surprised when I saw some of the photos showing the interior of this sensational building. This shows me that there are still magical places like this for me to explore in Paris. I am going to try to unravel the history of the National Library of France in an academic and a touristic view, from my personal findings and findings from other people, books and articles. The name ‘The National Library of France’ suggests that this is potentially the main Library in France in the capital city Paris, however BNF is just an umbrella consisting of four main libraries all located in Paris and one outside of Paris. These libraries go by the names of BNF Richelieu Site (which I will be focusing on); Bibliothèque Francois-Mitterrand; Bibliothèque de l’Arsenal; Bibliothèque-musée de l’Opéra and Maison Jean-Vilar located in Avignon, South of France.

The Richelieu site is the main birthplace of the Bibliothèque Nationale de France BNF for short. Found in the centre of the city Paris, “In the 17th century is was composed of several important and beautiful buildings. To this day it holds an incredible collection: manuscripts (from the remains of the most ancient writings to the manuscripts of modern writers), prints and photographs, stage music and art, letters and plans and finally the museum of coins, medals and antiques.”

This BFN dates back to 1368. Where there was a king by the name of Charles V. This library which we know now once accommodated the great Kings of France. The library had to move a couple of times due to the exceeded capacity and lack of space as more and more books were being made once the invention of printing had become a craze. The king wanted this library to have a copy of every single book which was ever made in France. The Library finally opened to the public in the late 17th century. Shortly after in the mid 19th century another key development took place in the Richelieu site where Henri Labrouste who had already designed a major library before known as Bibliothèque Saint-Genevieve was tasked to design the certain areas in the library. The first significant room which he designed was the reading room, which was named after him, The Labrouste Reading Room as shown below. Alongside this he also designed storage areas for the books.

From the late 19th century the library was still making improvements where architects Jean-Louis Pascal and Alfred-Henri Recoura worked on the oval room which is another one of the more popular rooms as shown below.

Following these major additions in the following years more storage and reading rooms were built due to the amount of book and manuscripts which were brought in. By the 20th century the library had held so many books that another library under BNT had to be built named after the French president Francois Mitterrand. This would be the beginning of the modern movement for the National Libraries becoming one of the largest libraries in the world. From the begging of the 21st century more adjustments were made to the library Richelieu, including renovations to the Labrouste reading room. To this day the library is still being refurbished in a chance to make the library more user friendly and accessible to all people with all types of abilities. During the second phase for the Libraries renovations, six BNF reading rooms are opened on the site. There are approximately 200 seats, not including the Labrouste reading room.

Henri Labrouste was a French celebrated protagonist architect in the nineteenth century. He studied in École des Beaux-Arts school of architecture and was immediately recognised as an outstanding student which allowed him to be moved to the second class. He shortly began to compete in competitions. Even though he wasn’t successful in his first competition for Grand Prix de Rome in 1821, he was noticed by many professors and architects for his talent and was given other opportunities for example working alongside Étienne-Hippolyte Godde as sous-inspecteur. In the next few years he again competed and subsequently won the Grand Prix de Rome in 1824 with his design for a Court of Appeals building. “In the mid-twentieth century, architectural historian and critic Sigfried Giedion likened Labrouste’s application of exposed cast iron in the interiors of his two Parisian libraries, the Bibliothèque Sainte-Geneviève (1838–1850) and the Bibliothèque nationale (1854–1875), to such industrial marvels of the nineteenth century as exhibition halls and train sheds, arguing that the industrial aspects of Labrouste’s building represented formal precursors of twentieth-century modernist architecture.” Labrouste was admired by some and despised by others, Harvard professor Neil Levine argued that Labrouste was not merely a forerunner of twentieth-century modernism, but rather that he also played a defining role in modernism’s development by sparking the Romantic rebellion in French architecture in the late 1820s.

“He took traditional masonry, although he refined the expression and thickness of its varied stone courses, and combined it with and architecture of assembling, in his two libraries, he set large metal frameworks within a stone enclosure and gave those frameworks proportions that fit their properties. Labrouste thus inaugurated a new building practice and heralded the fruitful research that architects would devote for the next century and half to shaping industrial materials, particularly composite material such a reinforced concrete.” Labrouste clearly inspired people with his rationalism. “These Americans recognized Labrouste as a provocateur and poet with a pen and pencil whose influence reverberated across the centuries.” “Labrouste gracefully transformed the classical language of masonry into an architecture suffused with space and light by exploiting the new structural possibilities of iron in his civic monuments.” (Suzanne Stephens Architectural Record)

Labrouste studied at the French Academy (Rome) from 1824 to 1830. There he developed ideas on ‘romantic rationalism’. What is rationalism? In the book A Companion to Rationalism it states that “The rationalist insists on the distinction between appearance and reality. Reality is revealed to our rational thought, which might also be called reason or intellect. Since appearance is the way reality appears to us, philosophy has two important tasks” Whereas romanticism and rationalism is a “particular view about the way the world is; what we can know about it; and a bit about what people are like. The basic idea is that you can’t trust your senses, only your intellect. One is that sometimes your senses deceive you; for example, a straight stick in a glass of water looks bent” From this I can see that Labrouste did what he felt was right, this is in fact what everyone noticed about him and why he was recognised for his bright new refreshing talent. Labrouste ended up falling out with the Beaux Arts over his restoration study of the ancient Greek temples in 1828 as he probably had new ideas about the order, balance and restrain which was the opposite of the neoclassic temples. “Labrouste believed that architecture should reflect society. Accordingly, his work reflects the rationalism and technical aspects of industrial society. His work also embodies the ideals of writer Victor Hugo, who believed that architecture is a form of communication, like literature, and that in ‘organic phases’ of construction it expressed a coherent body of social belief.”

Whilst studying in Rome he learnt and accepted functionalist theories by Jean Nicolas Louis Durand and the classical Italian structures which we see the influence taken in his more famous designs later on. In 1978, Labrouste’s work was still celebrated by other architects for his magnificent drawings and technique. Peter Smithson an english architect told an audience at the Architectural Association in London after visiting the Museum of Modern Art’s Beaux-Arts exhibition, which showed the drawings by Labrouste, “The rendered shadow of the feathers of the arrows and the shadows of the shields lashed to the columns are drawn so lightly that it’s almost impossible to believe it was done by human hand. It’s the best rendered drawing I’ve ever seen. In one long touch of the two-hair sable brush the drawing reveals two languages at work: the language of the permanent fabric and the language of its attachments – that which continues the idea of architecture and that which is the responsibility of those who use it.”

Labrouste opened up his own workshop to teach students about using new materials “the vital pre-eminence of a building’s function, and in the art of combining minimalism with an appreciation for classical ornament.” In 1856 once Labrouste’s studio was shut down the Encyclopédie d’architecture celebrated Labrouste as a leader and teacher. Stating his work as ‘the idea that in the design of buildings form should also be suitable and subordinated to function and that decoration should be born of construction expressed with artistry. ‘Throughout Labrouste’s career, he took part in the make for many other buildings such as monuments and hotels. But to this day he is most recognised for his two remarkable reading rooms, the photo below on the left hand side showing the Bibliothèque Sainte-Geneviève which was made in 1851 and on the right the BNF Richelieu site.

Both of the reading rooms were recognised for their elegant iron roof structure. I am really excited to visit both of these magnificent rooms to compare them and find similarities. I can straight away see some beautiful artistic work in the frames in the Bibliothèque Sainte-Geneviève they seem to be circular spirals filled with some kind of flower whereas in the BNF Richelieu site they are squares filled with crosses. “Commissioned to Labrouste in 1839, the Bibliothèque Sainte-Geneviève was the architect’s first major project, and a chance for him to demonstrate the validity of his design principles in the face of opposition. The large, oblong exterior of the library was in itself unusual at the time, whilst its appearance is suggestive of a similarly utilitarian use of iron inside the building. Compared with the austere grandeur of the exterior, the interior is, however, surprisingly delicate, characterised by its lightness and simplicity. Sixteen iron columns running down the centre of the room divide this vast interior into two barrel-vaulted naves punctuated by intricate metal arches, yet attention remains on the room’s primary purpose of learning and study. Remaining focused upon creating an intellectual and stimulating atmosphere, Labrouste also incorporated gas lighting into the building and was one of the first architects to do so.” Gas lighting is explained as a production of artificial light from combustion of a gaseous fuel, such as hydrogen, methane, carbon monoxide, propane, butane, acetylene, ethylene, or natural gas. “The Bibliothèque Sainte-Geneviève seems to embody Labrouste’s belief that functionality, when built with artistry, is the most expressive and beneficial form of decoration.”

After continuously learning and working on his style over the next couple of years, Labrouste was hired to make an extension for the BNF, the main reading room. Once Labrouste’s design was made it became the most important and known room in the library, hence why it was named after him. Re using the iron frame structures from The Bibliothèque Sainte-Geneviève reading room, “Labrouste positioned 16 iron columns, each only one foot in diameter, at intervals throughout the room to create expansive 10-metre-high spaces. Natural ‘zenithal’ lighting filters between these columns as they support nine shallow domes, each with its own oculus; the neutral shades and subtle decoration of these domes contribute to the tranquillity of the room, providing readers and thinkers with the ideal environment in which to work.”

After his death, Labrouste is still leaving an impact on millions of students and architects all around the world, his new ideas of design has allowed other architects to also explore themselves in their designs, I know that I, myself am very inspired from his work now, I have learnt that architecture can be artistic and modern and neoclassical at the same time. “His influence is recognised in innumerable styles, schools, and individual constructions, including Neoclassical forms, the Gothic Revival in France, the work of Louis Sullivan, ‘the father of skyscrapers’, in the United States, and even in the use of reinforced concrete.”

“The Royal Institute of British Architects publicly recognised his impact upon the art of architecture, ascribing to him ‘the vigour and vitality which has given birth to and guided the growth of the highly original art which marks the French school of the second quarter of this century. In 1875, the ramifications of Labrouste’s innovations in architecture have been repeatedly redefined, identifying him as an architect of truth, and as one who harnessed emptiness and light. Lucien Magne, author of L’Archotecture francaise du siècle, the first history of modern and contemporary architecture, discussed Labrouste in terms of ‘art nouveau’ even as early as the 1830s, testifying to his singularity amongst the Romantic architects of his time. The book was published in 1889 to align with the Exposition Universelle, a fair which sought to demonstrate the modernity of France after the turmoil and Revolution of the last hundred years. The symbol of this modernity, and the entrance to the fair, was the Eiffel Tower, a huge construction formed using wrought and cast iron, a monumental structure in the ‘iron order’, of which Labrouste has been named the creator.

The significance of this French architect, therefore, has clearly not been forgotten. In 1902, a bust of Labrouste was placed in the Bibliothèque Nationale, and in 1953 the architect was commemorated again in the library’s first exhibition of his work. More recently, in 2013 the Bibliothèque Nationale collaborated with the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the Cité de l’Architecture et du Patrimoine in Paris to exhibit his work to a larger audience than ever before. The exhibition in New York contained over 200 pieces, from original drawings to modern films and models, and was the most-attended architecture show worldwide in 2013. The retrospective, Henri Labrouste: Structure Brought to Light, was the first solo exhibition of his work in the United States, and will surely not be the last.”

“Labrouste (1801–1875) has been rigorously reappraised by subsequent generations of architects and architectural historians.”

References

1. Belier, C Bergdol, B. (2014) Henri Labrouste: Structure Brought to Light. Available at: http://www.caareviews.org/reviews/2141#.XmKwSVL7SqA (Accessed:1st March 2020).
2. Claude Eugene Guillaume, JB. (2008) Buste de Labrouste Available at: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Henri_Labrouste#/media/File:Henri_Labrouste,_buste.JPG (Accessed: 4th March 2020)
3. EU Touring (Year of publication unknown) History of the Bibliotheque Richelieu-Louvois Library. Available at: https://www.eutouring.com/bibliotheque_richelieu-louvois_history.html (Accessed: 4th March 2020)
4. Nelson, A. (2012) A Companion to Rationalism. Available at: https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=Awc5wgbeeW0C&printsec=frontcover&dq=rationalism&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiRqPqqhYfoAhXJa8AKHendDf8Q6AEIKTAA#v=onepage&q&f=false (Accessed: 6th March 2020)
5. Paris Adele (2016) Labrouste-saelle-reading-room-bnf-richelieu-reading-room-paris Available at: http://parisadele.com/portfolio/bibliotheque-richelieu/ (Accessed: 6th March 2020)
6. Pinterest (2020) The Richelieu-Louvois Library, Paris – France Available at: https://www.world-architects.com/en/architecture-news/works/restructuring-of-the-richelieu-site (Accessed 4th March 2020)
7. Silver, R (2018) Richard SilverSaint Genevieve Library Paris Available at https://www.artsper.com/en/contemporary-artworks/photography/620835/saint-genevieve-library-paris (Accessed: 7th March 2020)
8. Taylor, L (2017) The Architecture of Functional Artistry in Henri Labrouste’s Designs, Culture Trip. Available at: https://theculturetrip.com/europe/france/articles/henri-labrouste-the-architecture-of-functional-artistry/ (Accessed: 4th March 2020)
9. The New York Times (2013) A Poetry Grounded in Gravity and Air. Available at: https://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/14/arts/design/henri-labrouste-at-the-museum-of-modern-art.html?auth=link-dismiss-google1tap (Accessed: 1st March 2020).
10. Wikipedia (2019) Chateau de Benouville, south front. Available at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ch%C3%A2teau_de_B%C3%A9nouville (Accessed 7th March 2020)
11. World-architects.com Profiles of Selected Architects (2017) Floor Plan Available at https://www.world-architects.com/en/architecture-news/works/restructuring-of-the-richelieu-site (Accessed: 4th March 2020)
12. u/Viva_Straya, reddit (2019) Reading room in the National Library of France, Paris (1862-1868) [building]. Available at: https://www.reddit.com/r/architecture/comments/8wt67b/reading_room_in_the_national_library_of_france/ (Accessed: 4th March)

The appropriate lighting design is a critical component in architecture. Aside from complimenting the architecture by adding to the aesthetic appeal of an infrastructure, good lighting also ensures safety, efficiency and productivity (Ayuga & Zamorano, 2018). There are numerous factors to consider in achieving good lighting design. This paper will focus on reviewing these factors by using an actual infrastructure to analyze, specifically the Fisher Library. The Fisher Library is one of the twelve libraries that forms the library system of the University of Sydney. The analysis would include an assessment of the function of the space and the effectiveness of the current lighting. Finally, this paper will offer an alternative approach to the present lighting design.

The Fisher Library is one of the twelve libraries across seven different locations of the University of Sydney. It was first library to make up the University of Sydney Library System. The Fisher Library was initially located in the Quadrangle, which is now the Senate Room. However, the library was eventually moved into its new location along Eastern Avenue of Camperdown campus around 1962. The Fisher Library is considered the largest library of the twelve libraries in the library system. This library is one of the four other libraries in the University of Sydney that is open for 24 hours. It houses a collection of books and references in Humanities, Social Sciences and commercial disciplines. While on the outside, the Fisher Library appeared to be just a single building, the University claims that it is two separate buildings—the Fisher North (Bldg. F03) and Fisher South (Bldg. F04). The Fisher South Building was built five years after the North Building was established. This building is noted for its copper-clad outer walls. Majority of the History book collection is being housed in this building. The East Asian collection along with the University Archives can also be found in this building. Students can find a silent study desk in this library for when they need some serious reading and reviewing. However, a section of the building is shared with the School of Psychology.

The Fisher Library is used for different reasons. This building is primarily used as a study and research facility for students, faculty members and guests. However, the library is closed to the public, community borrowers and alumni after information desk hours, which runs from 8am to 10pm. While the library is open for everyone, the Fisher Library specifically caters to three departments—the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, the Faculty of Education and Social Work, and the Business School.

There are study desks found on the third level of the building. There is a total of 35 desks that can accommodate one person at a time, and it is equipped with a carrel style desk with power point, and a total of 19 PC desks equipped with a PC on a bench style desk. Aside from being a study area, the Fisher Library also have four meeting rooms that can be booked. These rooms can accommodate a maximum of five people per cubicle. Two of the meeting rooms (Rooms 204 and 205) are equipped with a desk, with five chairs, a large touch screen monitor, built-in PC or a wireless laptop interactivity, lighting control, Adobe Connect and JoinMe software. On the other hand, the two other meeting rooms (Room 211 and 212) have a desk with five seats, a DVD/VHS player, a BluRay DVD player, a large monitor, and a temperature and lighting control.

The largest library in the university of Sydney also has four multimedia rooms. Each room is coded by a color—purple (Room 401A), yellow (Room 401B), red (Room 401C), and blue (Room 401D). Each of these rooms can accommodate a maximum of two people at a time. Each of these four rooms has a computer and monitor. Students who want to use this room can borrow a headset from the information desk if needed. The Fisher Library is one of the only two libraries that has an Assistive Technology Room, along with the Health Sciences Library. This facility is particularly designed for students and faculties who have special needs. Students who want to use this room can request assistance from the University’s Disability Services, while the faculty and staff of the University can check with the staff with disabilities site. This room is equipped with software and hardware that are meant to assist individuals with special needs.

There are plenty of wide glass panels that acts as a window and source of natural light during the day, particularly in the Fisher North Building (Refer to Figure 1). These allows the library to conserve on energy during daytime to maximize the use of natural light. In Figure 2, there is a wide, round light surround the information desk. There are also several square-shaped ceiling lights, which helps provide ambient light to the room. These square lights are evenly spaced throughout the room. It helped that the ceilings are not too high making the light brighter on the space it covers (Bader, 2014).

Figure 1: Glass wall panels

Figure 2: Information desk at Level 3

Figure 3 shows the meeting room and media room found in the Level 2 and Level 4 respectively. The meeting room has narrow glass panels that served as window and source of light during daytime. However, it does not seem to have adequate artificial light for when the rooms will be used during late afternoon or in the evening. There are several pendant lights found around the room and one directly on top of the table. Pendant lights direct the light down on a particular area instead of scattering it around the room (Connors, 2019). It is used to enhance the decorative style of the room and provide task lighting.

Figure 3: Meeting Room (left); Media Room (right)

After analyzing the lighting design at the Fisher Library of the University of Sydney, it was found that while there were plenty of sources for natural light, it seemed to have inadequate source of artificial light. In some areas of the library there were light fixtures that seemed to be too much for a small space like the light fixture surrounding the information desk as found in Figure 2. The information desk does not need that much of light just concentrated in a small space. The meeting room uses pendant lights, and while it adds to the aesthetic value of the room, there is no point to have a light control in this room. Meeting rooms would naturally need sufficient lighting and a ceiling light could have done the trick on this room. As far as the media room is concerned, the issue here is more on how the entire room was designed. Instead of cemented walls, the room is surrounded by glass. The light from the outside may be a good source of natural or artificial light, but it defeats the purpose of a media room where students would often view a film or a video which often requires turn off the light or at least diming the light. In this case, because of the glass walls this cannot be done.

References

1. Ayuga, C. E. T., & Zamorano, J. (2018). Lica astrocalc, a software to analyze the impact of. artificial light: extracting parameters from the spectra of street and indoor lamps. Journal of Quantitative Spectroscopy & Radiative Transfer, 214, 33-38.
2. Bader, G. (2014). University of sydney library. Retrieved on 29 October 2019 from: http://web.archive.org/web/20141126054635/http:/www.library.usyd.edu.au:80/Home.html
3. Connors, J. (2019). Types of Lighting Fixtures. Retrieved on 29 October 2019 from: https://www.hgtv.com/remodel/mechanical-systems/types-of-lighting-fixtures
4. http://web.archive.org/web/20141126054635/http:/www.library.usyd.edu.au:80/Home.html
5. https://www.hgtv.com/remodel/mechanical-systems/types-of-lighting-fixtures

During my time at the University of Worcester, the achievements I accomplished include receiving my Worcester Award., which was a bronze award. To achieve a bronze award I needed work experience, personal development activities, and employability activities. It was difficult to find employability activities as I needed experience from places based on my course and in particular, it was really difficult finding experience in a law firm in Worcester as it is a small city and therefore was competitive to find work experience or volunteering position and many law firms declined me. I also tried the magistrate’s courts and the crown court in Worcester and Birmingham they couldn’t accept me because of confidentiality issues. However, I didn’t give up and I got accepted by Citizen Advice Worcester, where I currently volunteer every Thursday as a research campaign and advice worker and it’s interesting.

As part of my Worcester award, I volunteered at St John’s Library. During my time volunteering at St John’s Library, I helped to re-label the stock to make it more visible/accessible to the public. I also helped with shelving items and ensuring the library was kept tidy and presentable. I helped to design the new logo for the St Johns Library coffee shop and contributed ideas e.g. what biscuits/cakes they should have, opening times and the prices, etc.

Also, in St Johns Library, as a community, we care and take pride in everyone in Worcester, so we thought of doing a project to promote the public coming to the library and get people communicating with others. The project we came up with, was about Worcester before and after, which includes shops then and now. This should help everyone talk to one another. My duties were to make the PowerPoint by finding old pictures of Worcester and including them in the slides etc. I put all my effort into the Worcester award and contributed as much as I possibly could.

During the activity, I met Judges, Barristers, and Solicitors. We were talking about life in law firms, their daily duties, what cases they found quite interesting to work with, and what inspired them to do the job they were doing. I was proud to meet Judge Jim Tindel, Judge Khan, Judge Toby Hooper Judge Robert Juckes, and many more! All of these people gave me good advice for me to obtain my career and all of them inspired me. This is an achievement for me because I never had the opportunity to speak to a Judge, Solicitor, or Barrister, and these are the kind of people, I would like to follow after I have achieved my Law degree.

Another achievement I achieved was that I took part in the Worcester University Student Union general election, where I had my video taken and I had to say on camera who and why I was voting for. I was voting because I want the government to provide funding for the NHS.

Public libraries are quite the hot spot for study, resources, and quiet areas. Welcoming everyone from diverse backgrounds in order to promote equity of access to resources ​(Australian Library and Information Association, 2019). At first glance, libraries don’t seem ​too ​exciting, nor do they seem to be anything more than just a ‘collection of resources’ (​Heartsill Young, 1983). However, this was only the view I got from walking into my small local library. For the purpose of this assessment, I decided to travel to unfamiliar territory, venture far from home, and towards the Sydney CBD for a bigger and, to an extent, more intimidating study hot spot. What would be different from the local libraries? What type of interactions took place? What resources were provided?

I arrived around mid-morning, welcomed by a large standing structure of glass and stone. To my surprise, the first thing that could be heard when walking into the State Library of NSW was voices. “Is that all today?” asked the lady located in the bookstore to the left, and “How are you?” was exchanged between two women sitting at a table in the cafe. I hadn’t expected my observation to start from the minute I walked in.

Signs along the wall lead me to an area known as the “Governor Marie Bashir Reading Room”. I was welcomed by a security guard instructing me to put my bag in a locker, unable to take it into the reading room. This was my first confusion; in my local library, I was always able to keep my belongings. I followed his instructions before returning to the room, which was actually located down a large spiral staircase – difference two, the fancy and elegant architecture in comparison to the smaller and basic layout of my local library.

I located myself in a prime location to observe other members of the public and also the staff working at the reception desk. People of all ages and different walks of life were presented – no hierarchy of a particular gender, race, or age. To the left of me, I could see students studying. However, looking to my right was far more interesting. If I didn’t know before what exactly I was here to observe, I have found it now. I could see people, mainly of the older generation, looking upon computer screens – except, they weren’t exactly computers. This intrigued me. I watched as one lady, maybe around her mid-60s, walked towards a wall decorated with filing cabinets. She began looking through a drawer labeled ‘O’ before retrieving something, closing the drawer, and heading back to her original position. She took her seat and placed what looked like a film strip onto a small machine connected to the computer-looking device. Suddenly, a picture popped up on the screen – not very clear though.

She turned a knob on the bottom of the machine and the image became clearer. I was amazed and wanted to know more. So naturally, my observation became participant observation, taking part in the activity to learn the explicit aspect of the routine (​Bernard, H. Russell, and Clarence C, 2014).

I followed the unspoken instructions and approached the cabinets, deciding to look through a drawer labeled ‘D’. As I began to look through the drawer, I was startled by a worker, “Did you need any help?”, I informed her that I was just looking. She happily nodded and walked away. In comparison to my local library, I can assure you that most staff members wouldn’t bother asking if you needed help. Difference three; helpful staff.

I replicated the lady’s actions on the device and came to learn the film strips all contained different documents from time. I was astonished. Never could my local library provide such information as this.

In my general observations, I found that the generic uses of a library, studying, accessing resources, and interacting when needed, were generally the same. Both locations followed an unspoken rule of silence and maintained quiet chatter – breaking this rule resulting in the polite asking of ‘be quiet’. The biggest difference was the extensive resources available in the State Library. I was welcomed to the knowledge I would never have known if not for venturing out of my local environment. Observing this location provoked me to look beyond the basic expectations of a library and I was provoked to disallow my observations to be clouded by generalizations (​Bernard, J., 1945), which is important for an anthropologist to do in order to understand the unfamiliar.

References

1. Alia.org.au. (2019). ​Statement on public library services | Australian Library and Information Association. [online] Available at: https://www.alia.org.au/about-alia/policies-standards-and-guidelines/statement-public-library-services
2. Bernard, H.R. and Gravlee, C.C. eds., 2014. ​Handbook of methods in cultural anthropology. Rowman & Littlefield.
3. Bernard, J., 1945. Observation and generalization in cultural anthropology. ​American Journal of Sociology, ​50​(4), pp.284-291.
4. Heartsill Young, ed., The ALA Glossary of Library and Information Science (ALA, 1983)

During my time at the University of Worcester, the achievements I accomplished include receiving my Worcester Award., which was a bronze award. To achieve a bronze award I needed work experience, personal development activities, and employability activities. It was difficult to find employability activities as I needed experience from places based on my course and in particular, it was really difficult finding experience in a law firm in Worcester as it is a small city and therefore was competitive to find work experience or volunteering position and many law firms declined me. I also tried the magistrate’s courts and the crown court in Worcester and Birmingham they couldn’t accept me because of confidentiality issues. However, I didn’t give up and I got accepted by Citizen Advice Worcester, where I currently volunteer every Thursday as a research campaign and advice worker and it’s interesting.

As part of my Worcester award, I volunteered at St John’s Library. During my time volunteering at St John’s Library, I helped to re-label the stock to make it more visible/accessible to the public. I also helped with shelving items and ensuring the library was kept tidy and presentable. I helped to design the new logo for the St Johns Library coffee shop and contributed ideas e.g. what biscuits/cakes they should have, opening times and the prices, etc.

Also, in St Johns Library, as a community, we care and take pride in everyone in Worcester, so we thought of doing a project to promote the public coming to the library and get people communicating with others. The project we came up with, was about Worcester before and after, which includes shops then and now. This should help everyone talk to one another. My duties were to make the PowerPoint by finding old pictures of Worcester and including them in the slides etc. I put all my effort into the Worcester award and contributed as much as I possibly could.

During the activity, I met Judges, Barristers, and Solicitors. We were talking about life in law firms, their daily duties, what cases they found quite interesting to work with, and what inspired them to do the job they were doing. I was proud to meet Judge Jim Tindel, Judge Khan, Judge Toby Hooper Judge Robert Juckes, and many more! All of these people gave me good advice for me to obtain my career and all of them inspired me. This is an achievement for me because I never had the opportunity to speak to a Judge, Solicitor, or Barrister, and these are the kind of people, I would like to follow after I have achieved my Law degree.

Another achievement I achieved was that I took part in the Worcester University Student Union general election, where I had my video taken and I had to say on camera who and why I was voting for. I was voting because I want the government to provide funding for the NHS.

Public libraries are quite the hot spot for study, resources, and quiet areas. Welcoming everyone from diverse backgrounds in order to promote equity of access to resources ​(Australian Library and Information Association, 2019). At first glance, libraries don’t seem ​too ​exciting, nor do they seem to be anything more than just a ‘collection of resources’ (​Heartsill Young, 1983). However, this was only the view I got from walking into my small local library. For the purpose of this assessment, I decided to travel to unfamiliar territory, venture far from home, and towards the Sydney CBD for a bigger and, to an extent, more intimidating study hot spot. What would be different from the local libraries? What type of interactions took place? What resources were provided?

I arrived around mid-morning, welcomed by a large standing structure of glass and stone. To my surprise, the first thing that could be heard when walking into the State Library of NSW was voices. “Is that all today?” asked the lady located in the bookstore to the left, and “How are you?” was exchanged between two women sitting at a table in the cafe. I hadn’t expected my observation to start from the minute I walked in.

Signs along the wall lead me to an area known as the “Governor Marie Bashir Reading Room”. I was welcomed by a security guard instructing me to put my bag in a locker, unable to take it into the reading room. This was my first confusion; in my local library, I was always able to keep my belongings. I followed his instructions before returning to the room, which was actually located down a large spiral staircase – difference two, the fancy and elegant architecture in comparison to the smaller and basic layout of my local library.

I located myself in a prime location to observe other members of the public and also the staff working at the reception desk. People of all ages and different walks of life were presented – no hierarchy of a particular gender, race, or age. To the left of me, I could see students studying. However, looking to my right was far more interesting. If I didn’t know before what exactly I was here to observe, I have found it now. I could see people, mainly of the older generation, looking upon computer screens – except, they weren’t exactly computers. This intrigued me. I watched as one lady, maybe around her mid-60s, walked towards a wall decorated with filing cabinets. She began looking through a drawer labeled ‘O’ before retrieving something, closing the drawer, and heading back to her original position. She took her seat and placed what looked like a film strip onto a small machine connected to the computer-looking device. Suddenly, a picture popped up on the screen – not very clear though.

She turned a knob on the bottom of the machine and the image became clearer. I was amazed and wanted to know more. So naturally, my observation became participant observation, taking part in the activity to learn the explicit aspect of the routine (​Bernard, H. Russell, and Clarence C, 2014).

I followed the unspoken instructions and approached the cabinets, deciding to look through a drawer labeled ‘D’. As I began to look through the drawer, I was startled by a worker, “Did you need any help?”, I informed her that I was just looking. She happily nodded and walked away. In comparison to my local library, I can assure you that most staff members wouldn’t bother asking if you needed help. Difference three; helpful staff.

I replicated the lady’s actions on the device and came to learn the film strips all contained different documents from time. I was astonished. Never could my local library provide such information as this.

In my general observations, I found that the generic uses of a library, studying, accessing resources, and interacting when needed, were generally the same. Both locations followed an unspoken rule of silence and maintained quiet chatter – breaking this rule resulting in the polite asking of ‘be quiet’. The biggest difference was the extensive resources available in the State Library. I was welcomed to the knowledge I would never have known if not for venturing out of my local environment. Observing this location provoked me to look beyond the basic expectations of a library and I was provoked to disallow my observations to be clouded by generalizations (​Bernard, J., 1945), which is important for an anthropologist to do in order to understand the unfamiliar.

References

1. Alia.org.au. (2019). ​Statement on public library services | Australian Library and Information Association. [online] Available at: https://www.alia.org.au/about-alia/policies-standards-and-guidelines/statement-public-library-services
2. Bernard, H.R. and Gravlee, C.C. eds., 2014. ​Handbook of methods in cultural anthropology. Rowman & Littlefield.
3. Bernard, J., 1945. Observation and generalization in cultural anthropology. ​American Journal of Sociology, ​50​(4), pp.284-291.
4. Heartsill Young, ed., The ALA Glossary of Library and Information Science (ALA, 1983)