Biblioteca Almeida Garrett, Porto

A gallery of one thousand five hundred square metres unfolds here across two levels, making this municipal library a place for exhibitions as well as books. Biblioteca Almeida Garrett is set in the Crystal Palace Gardens and was created for Porto’s 2001 European Capital of Culture programme. It opened on the second of April 2001.

Designed by José Manuel Soares, the building also includes a café with an outdoor terrace and a small auditorium. The larger auditorium seats one hundred and ninety-two people and opens towards the adjoining garden; its sound, projection and lighting equipment support everything from theatre and film to talks, poetry readings and concerts. The library takes its name from Almeida Garrett, the Porto-born writer who lived from 1799 to 1854.

Inside, the reception area links the main parts of the building: the reading collections, auditorium and gallery. The gallery’s programme ranges through art, heritage, science and documentary displays, bringing local, Portuguese and international exhibitions into the gardens’ cultural life.