The Library: An Open Book
2025
The Library: An Open Book explores the evolving role of the library in the digital age—as a public meeting place, a cultural and spiritual space, and an enduring symbol of human creativity. Through a combination of short stories, essays, photographs, drawings, and a futuristic graphic novel, the book itself becomes a library in miniature, while proposing new ways of thinking about the meaning and future of libraries in a changing world.
The book marks the culmination of a three-decade journey toward the renewal of the National Library of Israel. It is a multidimensional cultural experience unfolding across three sections: the first examines the many sources of inspiration behind the design of the iconic building by Herzog & de Meuron, in collaboration with Mann-Shinar Architects; the second brings together stories and artworks created במיוחד for the book, reflecting the diverse meanings that libraries hold for their creators; and the final section takes readers on a compelling journey into the future world of libraries and their place within a transforming cultural landscape.
These themes are expressed through original photographs, artworks, and illustrations, alongside a wide range of texts that seek to expand the discourse and reflection סביב the National Library, placing it in dialogue with libraries of the past, present, and future.
All visual works and most of the texts were specially commissioned for the book by writers, photographers, and artists from Israel and around the world, including Hannah Rothschild, Simon Sebag Montefiore, Haim Be'er, Dorit Rabinyan, Etgar Keret, Susan Orlean, Azar Nafisi, Rutu Modan, Lior Zalmanson, Simon Schama, Lídia Jorge, Zoya Cherkassky, Eli Singalovski, and Avishag Shaar-Yashuv, among many others. The book also includes works by S. Y. Agnon, Martin Buber, and Meir Shalev.
- Copies: 1000
- Pages: 302
- Type of binding: Hard cover
- Languages: Hebrew, Arabic, English
- Dimensions (cm): 20x28.5
- Printing: Offsetdruckerei Karl Grammlich GmbH
- Binding: Offsetdruckerei Karl Grammlich GmbH
- Type of printing: Offset
- Publication: Asia, HIRMER, The National Library
- Place of publication: Israel, Germany
- Supported by: Yad Hanadiv - Edmond de Rothschild Foundation
- Book photography: Leafing Magazine
- ISBN: 978-3-7774-4323-2
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Ido Bruno is a designer, curator, and professor in the Polonsky Department of Industrial Design at the Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design in Jerusalem. Since 1994, he has taught in both the undergraduate and graduate programs at Bezalel, where he develops and teaches courses in technology, design for social change, design for medical and educational environments, and ethics in design. He is a co-founder of the group RDFD – Relevant Design for Disaster.
Bruno’s work moves between design practice, academia, curatorial work, and systems thinking within the fields of design and culture. He has served on committees for Israel’s Ministry of Education and Ministry of Culture, and as a juror in numerous design and art competitions and awards. His design and curatorial projects have been presented at leading institutions worldwide, including the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York, MUDAC in Lausanne, Sendai Mediatheque, and the Design Museum in London. Bruno has received several awards for excellence in medical product design, research in sustainable design, and the Ministry of Culture’s Design Award for his overall body of work. Between 2017 and 2021, he served as Director General of the Israel Museum, and today holds the title of Director General Emeritus.
He is the founder of IDBruno Studio for product and environmental design, focusing on exhibition and product design, human–environment interaction, design for special needs, informal education, and design solutions for disaster situations. Among the projects he has initiated and developed are the design and development of an earthquake-protection desk—created in collaboration with Arthur Brutter—which has received numerous awards and been implemented in schools in Bhutan and Nepal; the establishment of a special education school for evacuees from Sderot following the events of October 7; and additional projects carried out in high-risk regions around the world.
