Viana do Castelo Public Library

The public library stands on the riverside promenade, close to the mouth of the river. The Portuguese architect gave it a square plan, part of which is raised off the ground to leave a covered open space at street level.

A courtyard is cut into the middle of the square, so the reading rooms wrap around it and look both inward and out to the river and the town.

The white volume is lit inside by skylights and long windows, and the space beneath it opens onto a lawn and the water.