Revamped Asia Art Archive public library in Hong Kong goes from cramped to cosy after major year-long revamp

The Asia Art Archive (AAA) is reopening its public library of over 120,000 art historical records after a revamp that has transformed its 15-year-old premises

The first exhibition and public workshops to take place in the reopened space will launch on October 3 by appointment and to the public after November 23

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Asia Art Archive’s executive director, Christopher K. Ho, at the revamped library in Sheung Wan, Hong Kong. Photo: Xiaomei Chen

Published: 4:15pm, 2 Oct 2022Updated: 3:00pm, 3 Oct 2022

Corrected [2:35pm, 3 Oct, 2022]

[2:35pm, 3 Oct, 2022]
The organisation is Asia Art Archive, not Asia Art Archives, and Chinachem is among several sponsors of its new library

The Asia Art Archive (AAA) is reopening its public library of over 120,000 art historical records after a year-long revamp that has transformed its 15-year-old premises in a Hong Kong commercial building into a homely and spacious salon, one with much-needed extra shelf space.

Around the time of its 20th anniversary, the now 22-year-old non-profit organisation decided to make the most of its existing rented headquarters in Sheung Wan after a fruitless multi-year search for a new and more spacious permanent home, according to its executive director, Christopher K. Ho.

For art history researchers who used the spartan and cramped, albeit indispensable, facilities in the past, the facelift has rendered the space unrecognisable.

Hong Kong architecture firm LAAB created a full-floor, 3,000-square-foot (280-square-metre) library with a reading room and private study area that is far more welcoming and cosy than before, replacing walls with floor-to-ceiling glass and transforming the AAA’s intimidatingly discreet entrance that did not encourage visitors.

A hybrid of open and closed shelf systems expand previous shelf space by 50 per cent. Photo: Xiaomei Chen

The ambience is warm and playful, thanks to the ample use of wood, the mix-and-match seats sourced from local and regional makers, and a giant book-shaped pillar that doubles as an exhibition bulletin board.