This project, for my fourth-year spring semester studio abroad in Kraków, Poland, aimed to reimagine a vacant lot in Kraków’s Wesoła neighborhood which is slated for major redevelopment. We were tasked with creating a Mediateka: a modern media cultural institution centering the neighborhood, connecting people, providing access to knowledge, and fostering social life. This idea is translated through the form of the building, which is angled at the front of the building like an open book to signal all are welcome. This opening has an elevated edge that is directed to the historic church of the district. This, along with the other angles of the building, address the neighboring street intersections, rooting the mediateka into the neighborhood it calls home.

The open and transparent qualities of the fully glazed exterior is not only to continue the narrative of welcoming, but also to give the neighborhood a community hub that is figuratively and literally transparent for them. This transparency is managed through vertical elements that not only help regulate sunlight but also translate the idea of book pages. With this proposal, Wesoła is writing a new chapter!