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# Exploring the Architecture of Riverside Main Library
- URL: https://www.angles.blog/exploring-the-architecture-of-riverside-main-library/
- Published: 2026-10-04T01:00:26.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-04T01:00:26.000Z
- Description: I have spent some time shooting the Riverside Main Library over the years and the more I explore it, the more I wonder about how it was designed...
- Author: Colin Robertson
- Tags: architecture

The Riverside Main Library made a splash in my hometown when it opened a few years ago. It's an immediately striking building with its floating design and long swooping windows. I have spent some time shooting it over the years and the more I explore this building, the more I wonder about how this was designed.

For example, one of the things I kept coming back to while photographing the building was the main entrance. Rather than entering into a conventional lobby, visitors arrive at a pair of elevator doors in an angled (and very reflective!) elevator shaft. I found myself wondering how this bold design decision was made and how such a radical design was pitched to the city of Riverside.

![Daytime front elevation view of the Riverside Main Library, in Riverside, CA](https://storage.ghost.io/c/2f/f4/2ff4a39b-6b70-4185-aa10-16519b2d13ec/content/images/2026/10/Riverside-Main-Library-01-2.jpg)

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/2f/f4/2ff4a39b-6b70-4185-aa10-16519b2d13ec/content/images/2026/10/Riverside-Main-Library-02-1.jpg)

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/2f/f4/2ff4a39b-6b70-4185-aa10-16519b2d13ec/content/images/2026/10/Riverside-Main-Library-04.jpg)

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/2f/f4/2ff4a39b-6b70-4185-aa10-16519b2d13ec/content/images/2026/10/Riverside-Main-Library-05.jpg)

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/2f/f4/2ff4a39b-6b70-4185-aa10-16519b2d13ec/content/images/2026/10/Riverside-Main-Library-06.jpg)

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/2f/f4/2ff4a39b-6b70-4185-aa10-16519b2d13ec/content/images/2026/10/Riverside-Main-Library-19.jpg)

What was the inspiration behind the oblong shape of the large windows on the north and south-facing sides?

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/2f/f4/2ff4a39b-6b70-4185-aa10-16519b2d13ec/content/images/2026/10/Riverside-Main-Library-07.jpg)

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/2f/f4/2ff4a39b-6b70-4185-aa10-16519b2d13ec/content/images/2026/10/Riverside-Main-Library-08-1.jpg)

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/2f/f4/2ff4a39b-6b70-4185-aa10-16519b2d13ec/content/images/2026/10/Riverside-Main-Library-09-1.jpg)

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/2f/f4/2ff4a39b-6b70-4185-aa10-16519b2d13ec/content/images/2026/10/Riverside-Main-Library-10.jpg)

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/2f/f4/2ff4a39b-6b70-4185-aa10-16519b2d13ec/content/images/2026/10/Riverside-Main-Library-20.jpg)

Are the embedded boulders on the patio meant to echo the nearby Mount Rubidoux?

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/2f/f4/2ff4a39b-6b70-4185-aa10-16519b2d13ec/content/images/2026/10/Riverside-Main-Library-11-2.jpg)

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/2f/f4/2ff4a39b-6b70-4185-aa10-16519b2d13ec/content/images/2026/10/Riverside-Main-Library-14-2.jpg)

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/2f/f4/2ff4a39b-6b70-4185-aa10-16519b2d13ec/content/images/2026/10/Riverside-Main-Library-16-2.jpg)

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/2f/f4/2ff4a39b-6b70-4185-aa10-16519b2d13ec/content/images/2026/10/Riverside-Main-Library-17-2.jpg)

Day to night...

![Corner of the Riverside Main Library at night with an Edward Hopper feel](https://storage.ghost.io/c/2f/f4/2ff4a39b-6b70-4185-aa10-16519b2d13ec/content/images/2026/10/Riverside-Main-Library-18.jpg)

This post is also shared on my [portfolio website.](https://www.colinrobertson.studio/blog/exploring-the-architecture-of-the-riverside-main-library/?ref=angles.blog)