The competition challenged its participants to rethink and re-imagine the idea of the Library as a 21st-century self-learning and educational incubation space that not only sheds light on conventional means of knowledge but also encourages its users to interact, share ideas, and grow together. Participants were required to design a Tiny Library optimized for 50 users with engaging multifunctional spaces for all ages and spatial experience, where they need to choose a site in a rural or remote context for the proposal, wherever they feel accessibility to knowledge may change the existing circumstance and the structure should not exceed 300 sq.mt of built-up area.

Participants from more than 45countries contributed valuable concept ideas to the contest, which was evaluated by a panel of international experts.

Volume Zero Competition thanks all the competitors for participating in this competition and for contributing to this competition's research. 

The esteemed jury for judging this competition consisted of Avinash Ankalge (A Threshold), Petchimuthu Kennedy (Earthscape Studio), Swapnil Valvatkar (Collage Architecture Studio), Chen Xi (Atelier Xi), Peter Rich (Peter Rich Architects), ChenchenHu (HCCH Studio), Soumitro Ghosh (Mathew and Ghosh Architects), Song Yehao (THAD SUP Atelier), Bernardo Quinzaños (CCA Centro de Colaboración Arquitectónica), David Barragán (Al Borde).

The top three winners and Best Student were awarded total prize money of $4,500, while ten entries received Honorable Mentions. Here are the winning entries. (The full result for the competition the Tiny Library 2025 Architecture Competition can be found here.)

FIRST PLACE
Crossword - K Shashavindu
India

Agoda, a remote village in India, where geography shapes daily life. Residents must traverse vast river valleys on foot to access essential services. For young children, this journey especially to school - becomes a daily burden. This design reimagines the
bridge not just as a connector of places, but as a catalyst for change.

Bridges connect communities and are integral to our social fabric, but they can do more. By embedding a library within the bridge itself, the design merges movement with learning. Creating a dual - purpose structure that serves both physical and intellectual needs. Bridge construction is often costly and disruptive to communities and the environment, so this proposal seeks to maximize public investment and expand social value.

SECOND PLACE
Bivacco Library - Jinyue Hu & Xiang Li
United Kingdom

As technologies and modes of reading continue to evolve, our access to distant knowledges grows increasingly seamless. Yet, questions remain: How is a library grounded in immediacy and local specificity? Can shared reading experience strengthen not only the connections between individuals and knowledges, but also the ties among people and places? 

This project investigates the essential role of a minimal library for diverse reading communities embedded in a rural context of the Italian Alps. It proposes the design of a “bivacco library”, a hybrid of two archetypes-reading space and dwelling-deeply rooted in the cultural and natural heritage of the Alps.

THIRD PLACE
Barcoteca - Lucas Karmann & Jean Pfrunner
Brazil

Barcoteca is a new word, blending barco (boat) and biblioteca (library), to represent a mobile, water-borne cultural infrastructure.

The Rio Negro basin, nestled in the heart of the Amazon rain forest, is a vast and isolated territory where mobility is limited and access is possible only by boat. Indigenous, riverine, and Quilombola communities rely entirely on the river for transport, communication, and survival.

In this region, the State of Amazonas has only 19 public libraries,an average of one for every 170,000 people, leaving most inhabitants without access to books or educational resources.

This project proposes a modular floating library that combines vernacular building knowledge with contemporary parametric design tools.

STUDENT AWARD
Amoxcalli - Carlos Francisco Nava Martinez
Mexico

This project envisions a 300-square-meter library in Malinalco, a small town nestled in the heart of Mexico. Renowned for its Aztec temple ruins-once a sacred space for the preparation of warriors before the Conquest—Malinalco breathes history and ritual. The town later grew around the San Salvador Augustinian Convent, layering colonial heritage over ancient memory.

Over time, these rich narratives have shaped an economy centred on tourism, drawing visitors from afar. Yet, behind this cultural tapestry liesa quiet need: the local population remains underserved, particularly in access to educational infrastructure. This library seeks to redress that imbalance-to create a space not just for book, but belonging, learning, and the weaving of new knowledge intothe fabric of a storied place.

Honourable Mentions:
Honourable Mention 1: Sky Within Walls
Gregor Hufnagl & Jovana Milojevic
Austria

Honourable Mention 2: Finding in Self-Confirmation
Feng Yibo, Liu Qian & Zhang Yitian
China

Honourable Mention 3: Wisdom flow
Milana Yanbukhtina & Elena Lvova
Russia

Honourable Mention 4: Shelter Library
Park Garam & Choi Yeonsoo
Korea South

Honourable Mention 5: Connecting Generations, Through Time.
Song Jieun & Yun Seobin
Korea South

Honourable Mention 6: Tibet Sand Mandala
Wang Lan & Li Yujie
China

Honourable Mention 7: Shelter of Light
Vengseng Chiv & Dany Rith
Cambodia

Honourable Mention 8: Canyon Codex
Darshan Dilipkumar, Shubham Negi & Priyanka Kalita
India

Honourable Mention 9: The Learning Kiln
Aditya Sharma, Siddhant Bhatasana & Abhidev Thankappan
India

Honourable Mention 10: Canopy of Commons
Ananya P Nayak & Tasneem Vali
India