Transparency and luminosity underscore this new two-story library in Washington, D.C.’s southwest neighborhood of Anacostia. Designed to serve the community day and night, the building connects to the landscape and employs multiple sustainable building strategies including a passive daylight-management system. A large overhang on the south façade, a baffled skylight, an east-facing clerestory, and an exterior shade scrim on the west curtainwall contribute to the naturally illuminated interiors. Tight budget and energy allowances called for T8 lamping in the electric lighting. These lights are zoned to balance with the available daylight, so that the luminaires remain off during the majority of daylight hours. This results in an estimated 50 percent power savings over an equivalent lighting system. As a luminous beacon that creates a new gathering place, the Anacostia Neighborhood Library celebrates the power that design can have in transforming an urban community and its long-term growth.
Jury Comments: A striking coming together of architecture and light. • A successful balance of multiple design elements.
Elizabeth Donoff is Editor-at-Large of Architectural Lighting (AL). She served as Editor-in-Chief from 2006 to 2017. She joined the editorial team in 2003 and is a leading voice in the lighting community speaking at industry events such as Lightfair and the International Association of Lighting Designers Annual Enlighten Conference, and has twice served as a judge for the Illuminating Engineering Society New York City Section’s (IESNYC) Lumen Award program. In 2009, she received the Brilliance Award from the IESNYC for dedicated service and contribution to the New York City lighting community. Over the past 11 years, under her editorial direction, Architectural Lighting has received a number of prestigious B2B journalism awards. In 2017, Architectural Lighting was a Top Ten Finalist for Magazine of the Year from the American Society of Business Publication Editors' AZBEE Awards. In 2016, Donoff received the Jesse H. Neal Award for her Editor’s Comments in the category of Best Commentary/Blog, and in 2015, AL received a Jesse H. Neal Award for Best Media Brand (Overall Editorial Excellence).Prior to her entry into design journalism, Donoff worked in New York City architectural offices including FXFowle where she was part of the project teams for the Reuters Building at Three Times Square and the New York Times Headquarters. She is a graduate of Bates College in Lewiston, Me., and she earned her Master of Architecture degree from the School of Architecture at Washington University in St. Louis.
