Written by Roman Wojciechowski, Ewa Lewandowska and Marcin Wiktor
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Sopoteka is the newest branch of the Sopot Library. This newly established and most modern media library consists of several sections that includes a computer lab, music stands, a reading room with beach baskets and quiet work places, and a children’s playspace with consoles and colorful blocks. The heart of this place is a multifunctional open space which could serve not only as a cinema or theatre, but as well as a meeting place for authors, poetry evenings, music workshops and all kinds of lectures.
In Sopoteka we blend together daily life with social and cultural entertainment. E-books, audiobooks and traditional book. Technology and people. Culture, education and entertainment. Beach baskets and cushions. Modernity, which does not overwhelm, but inspires – perfectly described by our colors – natural, bright wood and white.
Sopoteka is located in Sopot Centrum Complex, which serves also as a train station, in the very centre of the city. It occupies over 700 square meters and is the flagship branch of the Sopot Library. With such a modern arrangement of rooms it is counted among the most modern cultural public space on the map of Tricity. With our unique furniture – such as beach chairs or a beach platform equipped with comfortable sofas and pillows, thanks to which you can adopt a lying position, listen to music or read books, Sopoteka gets more than five hundred visitors per day. Readers will find 13,000 volumes, a rich selection of magazines and daily newspapers. Our furniture can be also used by a bigger, organized group of people who come to read the newspaper, make a presentation, work or play board games, which we have in the library.
Sopoteka combines a classical library with the newest set of entertainment and recreational tools, such as e-books, oculus, audiobooks, movies, vinyls and CDs, music streaming, as well as PS3, PS4 and Xbox360.
In our library we present the daily usage of 3D printers, Drone and RoboShows with Dash and Dot and Lofi Robots, to fully represent capabilities of these devices and teach the basics of coding.
Sopoteka works also as a place for younger readers and organized school groups. Here, they have a chance to compete in reading marathons, participate in Extraordinary Library Lessons, play board games in specially organized events, as well as workshops „Last Call to Graduate” for high-schoolers preparing for the finals.
For all readers we provide multimedia workshops, performative reading, language workshops such as „Chat Away”; and „We speak Polish”. There are also other attractions for adults, such as meetings with authors, Discussion Book Club, movie screenings „Thursdays with Osa”, workshops for beginners in novel-writing, Sopots Criminal Club, PhotoClub and Klub Praktyki Stoickiej (Philosophical Club). For our seniors we have prepared photo workshops, computer and PocketBook courses and many others.
Sopoteka provides its space for artists. Every month we host a different exhibition of local painters, photographs or sculptors.
Our main purpose is to fulfill the traditional function of a library with the newly established concept of multimedia and cultural art gallery. We are a place for people that additionally combines elements of modern cultural and multimedia center.
It surely is, just as regulars use to say – life here slows down for a moment.
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