MAIN ENTRANCE

Some years ago, wandering around in Copenhagen by myself, I walked around the entire "Black Diamond", the new building of the Danish Royal Library, looking for the main entrance. When one looks at the building, isn't it quite easy to presume that it's at the middle of the water façade, and if not there, then maybe to the road? It's neither. Actually saw the entrance almost at once, but assumed it was just a side door leading to the bookshop or something like that, probably because of its place on the side of the façade, the size of it (rather small) and/or the lack of architectural elements pointing it out.

The Black Diamond has been praised for it's sleek architecture and originality, but how useful to anyone is it really to be confused by a building? I've gotten the impression that some people think this to be democratic, but I don't understand how. Democracy is all about systems that are open, accessible and readable to the public, not about making people walk around in endless labyrinths to find what they're looking for. (It could also be interesting to note that the building is not called a library, but a diamond, when it's not a diamond, but a library. More about that some other time.) I think I want to design more readable buildings than this one when I become an architect.