2015

Françoise Sagan media library, Paris

The signage project for the Françoise Sagan Media Library is based on a few key observations and strong design choices. First and foremost is its location within the historic buildings of the Carré Saint-Lazare, a site steeped in history and stories (a former leper colony, hospital, women’s prison, and more) in the heart of Paris. Second, the relocation within the library of the equally historic “L’Heure Joyeuse” collection—a post-war library specializing in children’s and young adult literature, established with the help of American funds—which also defines and lends a very strong identity to the facility. In such a place, escape, learning and study, visual and imaginative pleasure remain the primary motivations for a public that, during their visits, will discover a graphic wayfinding system that is both narrative and digressive. Rather than the systematic use of pictograms that essentially symbolize only a single idea, the wayfinding system—entirely hand-drawn—accompanies the titles and directional signs with drawings and illustrations of diverse styles and sensibilities, contextualized according to the messages conveyed. This identifying iconographic language thus allows for different levels of interpretation and, like a book one rediscovers, will accompany and perhaps challenge the young audience, in particular, during their subsequent visits. Thus, in such a historical setting, we tell stories to guide and inform the public.

Design Team — irb laboratory Denis Coueignoux, David Thoumazeau, Olivier Duzelier, Anouck Fenech
With drawing assistance from Simone Burth, Ophélie Tara, Arthur Guibert, and Danielle Rosales