Dundee Idea Store Part 1 Project 2008 Adam Carter Edinburgh College of Art | UK IDEA STORE /public library/dance studio/cafe/creche/teaching & therapy space/recording studiothe design aims to provide a flowing public space from street level to the roof garden where the route through the building culminates with the view over the River Tay / changing sections and plans provide both vertical and horizontal movement through the building whilst large open plan circulation zones create a sense of connection between the different spaces / the street elevation is simplified to express 'entrance' and 'public space' whilst the side elevations are clad in translucent polycarbonate allowing the internal floor plates and circulation to be visible from outside / the public space at street level extends into the dance studio allowing the dancers to move outside during the summer and the public to act as a passing audience to the dancers performing within / the four libraries (adult, teen, children's and reference) occupy their own unique space along the path of the building and each has its own distinct atmosphere such as the 'secure' children's room or the 'hidden' reference library / the continuous flowing skin of the building is a response to its hillside position as well as an attempt to address the two opposite but equally important relationships the site has with the river to one side and Perth Road to the other / the design requires almost no artificial lighting during the day, uses natural ventilation during the summer and the sloping roof acts as a large gray water collection system / finally this design is an attempt to inject a feeling of pride and value into a much neglected area / it aims to be more than the average piece of 'council architecture' instead aspiring to put Dundee on the international map Adam Carter