Humboldt Library

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Humboldt Library
Humboldt Library Entrance Area.jpg

Entrance area of ​​the Humboldt Library

founding 1989
Duration 130,000
Library type District Central Library
place Berlin-Tegel coordinates: 52 ° 35 ′ 31.2 ″  N , 13 ° 16 ′ 51.2 ″  EWorld icon
ISIL DE-B714 (Humboldt Library)
operator District Office Reinickendorf of Berlin
management Claudia Arndt
Website Humboldt Library

The Humboldt Library ( listen ? / I ) is the Reinickendorfer district central library . It is located on the northern edge of the center of Tegel . The post-modern library building was planned as part of the International Building Exhibition in 1987 and went into operation in 1989. In addition to its core function, it is also used as an event location for a variety of cultural activities. The library is named after the brothers Wilhelm and Alexander von Humboldt . Audio file / audio sample

Location and architectural design

Location and catchment area

Ascent from Karolinenstrasse

Located on the eastern edge of the Tegeler Hafen in the immediate vicinity of the Humboldtmühle and not far from Tegel Castle , the Humboldt Library is a short walk from the Alt-Tegel underground station and the various bus lines that stop there. In addition to Tegel, its catchment area includes the neighboring districts of Borsigwalde , Wittenau and Waidmannslust . The Humboldt Library is also the closest public library to the Reinickendorfer districts of Heiligensee and Konradshöhe , which are further north-west .

Origin context

The Tegel culture and leisure center, which has only just begun, is in the design stage

The initial spark for planning the Humboldt Library at this location was the Tegeler Hafen competition as part of the International Building Exhibition 1984/8 . On 24./25. In October 1980, the jury members decided to award first prize to Charles Moore's design and recommended its implementation. The realization then turned out to be difficult, especially from a financial point of view, as the budget of 16 million Marks approved by the Finance Senator in 1984 could not be adhered to. Due to the digested sludge layers encountered, the subsoil turned out to be considerably less favorable than assumed in the cost estimate for the requirements program. With the necessary foundation on bored piles, the first one and a half million were unexpectedly gone. Finally it turned out that the original design could not have been realized for less than 24 million marks. Moore himself played a decisive role in the solution that was then reached by providing for a ten meter shorter extension of the library in a revised draft version. Even for this, however, there were still 20.5 million marks to be raised; The district took over the shortfall in cover of 4.5 million marks by temporarily postponing other pending investment projects.

Room impression from the western gallery
View of the Tegel harbor

In the original plans by architects Charles W. Moore, John Ruble and Buzz Yudell for the IBA1987, the Humboldt Library was part of a larger cultural center that was also to extend to the artificial island at the east end of the former Tegel industrial port. Nothing came of this in view of the apparently lack of funding. The library construction work, which began in 1986, went hand in hand with the design of a large water area, a promenade and 350 residential units. Of the planned cultural center, however, only the Humboldt Library was realized. “The steel and concrete framework,” the architects said in a description, “is exposed to the interior, and this industrial rigor has been worked out into a playful, almost baroque collection of details for the arches and the ceiling. The bookcase itself is made of painted and natural hardwood, similar to furniture. "

Postmodern building

The elongated building - the long hall continues the axis of the port according to the architects' ideas - gets its characteristic appearance primarily from the front, classical-inspired entrance decor. Inside there is an impressive spatial experience. The built-in book walls over two floors are reminiscent of baroque monastery libraries, and the spacious three-aisled hall is reminiscent of a sacred building with industrial architectural ingredients. The west side of the building is dominated by a large window that provides a view of the harbor basin, the Sechserbrücke and the Tegeler See .

Room impression from the east gallery

On the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the Humboldt Library, Charles Moore was quoted as follows with his description of the building:

“[…] It should be monumental, but at the same time intimate, dimensioned in such a way that the individual reader feels at the center of a world, in a room that is filled with reflected light from the south, with a view through the high windows into the Forests to the north in the direction of the 'Humboldt-Schlößchen' of Karl Friedrich Schinkel, the residence of Wilhelm von Humboldt, after whom the library is named. Behind the high reading room there is a wave-shaped wall of books, two stories high and provided with a gallery, whereby the presence of the books in the library, in the style of the 19th century, is brought into focus. The light from the southern sun is deflected by an inner arch, which gives the room with the wooden ceiling above the bookcase and its residents a sublime, yet intimate character. "

- 1989–2014: 25 years of the Humboldt Library
Sculpture by Volker Oellermann: The crouching one

The architecture of the Humboldt Library continues to attract great interest. This can be seen in the numerous, including international, trade visitors and groups of architects who have visited the library in recent years. For the interested public, there are two fixed dates for architectural tours annually in September on the Open Monument Day . Detlef Kraft's monument to the Humboldt brothers from 1997 stands in front of the entrance area of ​​the Humboldt Library .

Media equipment and events

Broad and widely used media spectrum

The Humboldt Library holds around 130,000 media in a dozen different categories for public use. More than 800 visitors daily and around 800,000 loans annually testify to the intensive use of this offer. A virtual tour is offered online for spatial orientation and exploration of individual media locations. There is an audio guide for the children's and youth library .

Readings, exhibitions and other cultural activities

The interior of the library is a suitable and popular place for readings and award ceremonies, among other things, thanks to its open spaces and appealing ambience. Well-known writers come to the “Bookmarks” series event that has existed for many years to present their latest works. The annual Reinickendorfer Kriminacht under the title “Tatort Tegel” celebrates its 25th anniversary in 2017 and is regularly sold out with up to 300 visitors. In cooperation with the Association of German Writers, the "Krimifuchs" is awarded for outstanding achievements in the crime fiction genre.

In cooperation with the Reinickendorf Adult Education Center, the Humboldt Library organizes courses in its conference room to train authors and thus itself contributes to the promotion of young literary talents. Lectures, art exhibitions and concerts, which are always updated in the event calendar on the website and which are advertised with flyers on site, round off the diverse cultural offerings of this striking public institution in Tegel.

  • Monument to the Humboldt brothers

  • View from the west

  • View from the gallery

  • Exhibition area

  • Media offers and relaxation areas

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ From: The new Humboldt Library. Festschrift for the opening of the new central library in Berlin Reinickendorf. Published by the Reinickendorf District Office, January 13, 1989, p. 17.
  2. ^ The new Humboldt Library. Festschrift for the opening of the new central library in Berlin Reinickendorf. Published by the Reinickendorf District Office, January 13, 1989, p. 16 f.
  3. ^ The new Humboldt Library. Festschrift for the opening of the new central library in Berlin Reinickendorf. Published by the Reinickendorf District Office, January 13, 1989, pp. 25 and 28.
  4. ↑ Series of publications on the International Building Exhibition 1984/1987. Volume 5. Tegel. Edited by Josef Paul Kleihues , Stuttgart 1989, p. 128.
  5. ↑ Brochure, published by the Reinickendorf District Office, p. 35.
  6. ↑ 1989–2014: 25 years of the Humboldt Library ; published by the Reinickendorf District Office, p. 29.
  7. ↑ The inscription in the book that Wilhelm von Humboldt's memorial figure holds is Japanese (17th century) and (in translation) German: “Linger in humanity. Base yourself on justice. "
  8. ↑ Profile display on the library website
  9. ↑ 1989–2014: 25 years of the Humboldt Library ; published by the Reinickendorf District Office, p. 17.
  10. ↑ Project partnerships of the Humboldt Library
  11. ↑ Library website for the children's and youth library
  12. ↑ 1989–2014: 25 years of the Humboldt Library ; published by the Reinickendorf District Office, p. 29.