Development Direction of Public Libraries as the Complex Cultural Space for Local Community Activation

Abstract

(Background and Purpose) Recently, the expansion of the role of the public library beyond the place of information acquisition and education centered on books is demanding the symbol of the community and the value as a cultural community space. Accordingly, public libraries are developing in the form of complex cultural spaces to revitalize the region. The purpose of this paper is to explore the development direction of the public library to provide the central point of the development of unique culture and arts in a specific region and to create a cultural identity. In particular, this study aims to suggest the development direction of public libraries for local cultural branding through the study of public libraries as complex cultural spaces. (Method) First, we studies the concept of public library, the role related to the community, and the meaning of the library as a complex cultural space based on the bibliographic information. Second, we analyzes the cases of domestic and foreign public libraries operating as complex cultural spaces. Third, through the analysis results, we suggest the direction of development of public library as a complex cultural space. (Results) The function of a complex cultural space can be linked to the function of a public library by the characteristics of symbolism, complexity, expertise, participation and accessibility. As a result of the case analysis, participation among the five characteristic elements was the highest, which could see the importance of encouraging voluntary participation by providing various programs and spaces. The next high level of complexity and accessibility conforms to the meaning of a complex cultural space in that you can experience various values in an easily accessible space. Symbolism was rated as the highest scale in all cases. Based on this symbolism, the public library as a cultural complex will be able to be a landmark that accentuates the characteristics of the area and thus gain the value of the tourism industry as well as the influx of people from other regions. (Conclusions) Public libraries as complex cultural spaces can be landlocked and improve the quality of cultural spaces by developing contents of cultural spaces that fit the characteristics of regions and providing professional information. In addition, the architecture that serves as the hardware of space should be unique, and the operating program that is the software should meet the user's requirements. Variety, a characteristic of complex cultural spaces, needs to be applied to the spatial composition and services of public libraries. In conclusion, the pursuit of directionality, which fused the role and spatial composition of the composite cultural space while maintaining the basic function of public libraries, is expected to help promote the local branding and the lives of local residents.