Gowanus Library

How it started

Brooklyn Public Library came to us with a short brief and a long wish list. We spent the first month mostly listening — walking the site at different times of day, sketching on whatever paper was nearby, and asking a lot of slightly odd questions about how people actually wanted to use the place.

The big idea

Every project needs one idea strong enough to survive value engineering. Here it was simple: make the everyday moments generous. Wider thresholds, deeper window seats, a stair you want to sit on, light that arrives where you need it most.

Built with

Cross-laminated timber, reclaimed brick, lime plaster, recycled steel and a lot of paint samples. Wherever we could, we worked with makers within a few hours’ drive.

What we learned

That the best details are often the ones people never notice — they just feel right. And that a good contractor is worth their weight in coffee.