The library was founded in 1951 by the famous Dutch pianist and composer Leo Kok and is located in the beautiful Casa Serodine, an architectural jewel of the Baroque in Ticino.

In the post-war period, the library was a famous meeting place for writers and intellectuals. After years, the new owner wanted to give a more current course to the cultural institution, expanding the offer towards the art and the organization of events and investing in a targeted and minimal renovation.

The intervention concerns the service areas, the insertion of a bar and finally the lighting, designed in collaboration with the lighting consultant Marco Bruno of “dimensioneluce”, Bellinzona.

The surgery is inconspicuous, sober and lasting.

The project does not impose itself on places, but is a part of it, in an intrinsic and coherent way. For the flooring we investigated the local and consolidated solutions, which make use of river pebbles and splitted paving.

It was preferred to use a stone with marked oxidation and coloring. Furthermore, material from the demolition of the cantonal road was fortunately found. It was decided to reuse it for detailed solutions, such as the rainwater drainage channel or for grafting the flooring onto the paths that climb up from the lakefront towards the core.

The lake railing has a marked and dry presence, which does not impose itself however, but coexists in a polite way with the view of the beautiful lake landscape of Lake Maggiore.

The project is aimed at the restoration of a villa of the late nineteenth century and of various appurtenances.

For the villa, the demolition of all the volumes built in the seventies and the reconstruction and reorganization of the demolished volume are expected, with the intention of bringing out the lake front and restoring construction quality and unity to the non-original parts.

For the Derrigo house, part of the nucleus of the rustic buildings at the back, and for the cottages themselves, a conservative restoration and minimal intervention is foreseen.