Tweet

Francis Kéré / Kéré Architecture has revealed the design for the Biblioteca dos Saberes (The House of Wisdom) in Rio de Janeiro’s Cidade Nova neighbourhood. Commissioned by Rio de Janeiro City Hall and located at the heart of a new urban development, the library and cultural centre will serve as an anchor for the revitalisation of this historic district near Valongo Wharf and the Little Africa neighbourhood. The design was presented to members of the community in Rio de Janeiro on 20 November, the National Day of Zumbi and Black Consciousness in Brazil.

The Biblioteca dos Saberes will transform the city centre into a more accessible, walkable, and vibrant area, breathing new life into a neighbourhood best known for its celebrations during Rio Carnival. Central to the design is “the tree of knowledge”, a vertical cylinder inspired by trees native to the Tijuca Forest. It references both the natural landscape surrounding the city and the symbolic role of trees in Francis Kéré’s hometown of Gando, Burkina Faso, where they serve as communal gathering places. This structure connects the building’s three storeys, which house reading rooms, library stacks, workshops, exhibition spaces, an auditorium, and a café. Activities follow a sequence progressing from quiet to lively: reading, sharing, gathering, performing, making, eating, and playing.

Externally, the building is characterised by landscaped terraces, open-air areas, shaded courtyards, a canopied amphitheatre, a café, and a rooftop garden. A pedestrian bridge will connect the library to a monument honouring the anti-slavery resistance leader Zumbi dos Palmares. The perforated façade provides protection from the sun, while the roof gardens and tower contribute to cooling and passive ventilation throughout the building.

Eduardo Paes, Mayor of Rio de Janeiro, said:
“From Little Africa to the world, Francis Kéré’s project pays homage to the Atlantic, African, and portside formations that have shaped this plural Rio — a home for all Cariocas. A library of samba and of the people’s wisdom, it consolidates Rio’s legacy as the first Portuguese-speaking city ever named UNESCO World Book Capital — an honour that now becomes both a work and a symbol of our time.”

Francis Kéré commented:
“The Biblioteca dos Saberes is a celebration of the beautiful city of Rio de Janeiro. I love its rhythm, its voices, its spirit flowing through the streets and along the waves of the Atlantic. This library grows from the city’s history and wisdom, from samba that moves the body to the poetry that moves the heart. It is a home for knowledge that belongs to everyone — a place where past and future meet beneath one roof, open to the city and to the sea that carries its stories to the world.”

The library draws inspiration from the rich cultural and historical context of Rio de Janeiro. Situated on the former Praça Onze — the site of Brazil’s first samba school — and adjacent to Oscar Niemeyer’s Sambódromo, it celebrates Indigenous and Afro-Brazilian heritage, oral traditions, and samba as a living form of knowledge. The building also reflects the area’s layered history, highlighting the city’s cultural diversity and its role as a meeting point of different communities. Drawing on Francis Kéré’s experience of building in Africa, it reimagines the Atlantic not as a divide but as a river of shared heritage linking Brazil and Africa, shaping a library and cultural hub designed to inspire and serve generations to come.