No surprises here: in advance of tonight's community meeting at the Martin Luther King Library, the design team of Mecanoo/Martinez & Johnson has released a fresh batch of their design ideas. The Dutch & D.C.-based super team's adventurous designs that still respected the source material ensured back in February that they would win the bid to redesign the classic Mies Van Der Rohe building (albeit to mixed reception). The full presentation focuses on both big picture ideas and minutiae. Everything from a grand vision of the Great Hall (complete with TED talks) to choices in furniture and flooring get some face time. However, the newest renderings actually show the designers' vision for the outdoor spaces on G and 9th Streets. The 9th Street space shows tables outside of the appropriately named Cafe Mies and the exterior area visible from G Street looks like a more child-friendly space. The meeting in the Great Hall starts tonight at 6:00 p.m., but do take a look at some of those renderings now.
· MLK Renovation Design Concepts [DC Public Library]
· Renderings Show a Sleeker, More Engaging MLK Library [WCP]
· All MLK Library Coverage [CDC]