ST KILDA PUBLIC LIBRARY

The St Kilda Public Library is a single-storey building of bold sculptural form completed in 1972. It was designed by Italian-born, Canberra-based architect Enrico Taglietti for the City of St Kilda to a brief developed by city librarian, Vida Horn. The building is distinguished by its inwardly sloping concrete walls, and oversized timber eaves and fascias. The interior public areas are largely open-plan, and both the interior and exterior feature original fixtures. The building was extended to designs by Ashton Raggatt McDougall in 1993, which include a feature on the Carlisle Street side of the building that resembles an open book. Objects integral to the place include furniture selected by Taglietti and a mural by Mirka Mora. 

The St Kilda Public Library is of architectural significance to the State of Victoria. It satisfies the following criterion for inclusion in the Victorian Heritage Register: 

Criterion D
Importance in demonstrating the principal characteristics of a class of cultural places and objects.

St Kilda Public Library is significant as a notable example of a municipal public library from the post-1950 period. The St Kilda Public Library represents one of the most distinctive and architecturally fine libraries erected in Victoria. The building has a striking external form and an innovative internal layout along with original library furniture and light fittings specified by the architect. At the time of completion, it was lauded as one of the finest and most modern libraries in Australia. It is an important work of eminent Italian-born, Canberra-based architect Enrico Taglietti and his most well-recognised work in Victoria.