Angoulême is a city with about 41.000 inhabitants, 130 kilometres north of Bordeaux. Angoulême region counts about 107.000 people. Traditionally it is a centre of paper industry, nowadays also packaging materials.

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In December 2015 the French prime minister opened the new ‘mediatheque', named Alpha. The building was designed by Loci-Anima architects, has over 5.000 m² floor space and 50 meter long facades. Alpha’s location is next to the railway station, easily accessible. The building is a stack of 5 long boxes that form an A towards the sky; alpha. Trespassers like me don’t see this A by the way. The public space around Alpha is very nicely designed

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Alpha is not a public ’bibliotheque’, it is a media library and a big community centre built around three worlds of Imagine, Create and Understand.  “Conviviality, culture, study, exchanges coexist in order to give each citizen the opportunity to better create, imagine and understand their life”, says the organisation. Next to many documents, Alpha offers access to online resources, rooms and workspaces, cultural programs, educational support, a 90-seat auditorium, an exhibition hall, a large café, etc.

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Alpha is a great building that one would not expect in a small town. A matter of taste perhaps, but the design and the interior are beautifully done. The building does what it is supposed to do; people study, do video games, meet in the café, search for music and movies, etc.

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Visitors to Angoulême  and the region are directed by the tourist office to the natural and cultural assets, like the cathedral, castles, parks and nature, archeological sites, etc. And there is a famous museum of comics, Musée de la Bande dessinée. Visitors are recommended to go to Alpha as well, a special place to experience a bit of the everyday life of Angoulême’s citizens. There is coffee, there is a lunch, and a lot to see.​​