embassy of

libraries

khanh nguyen
10001664@network.rca.ac.uk
regenerative
manifesto
the future will be all about cherishing the old, the used, the “pre-loved.”
respecting the worn, like a badge of honor. there will be no stores. there will
only be “libraries.” instead of buying new things when we want them, we will
browse for found objects when we need them. these will be donated or given
by others in our community, and we contribute our own items in turn.

we will be proud of borrowing, knowing that we found a creative way to look

at something that was once discarded. we will be proud of product longevity,
of stretching things to make them everlasting and of breathing a second life
into objects. we will be proud of being resourceful, of knowing that we were
able to make do or to use something in an inventive way. we will minimize
what we have, and we will be hanging onto things for as long as possible. we
will budget what we buy, both in terms of money and in terms of economic
points. we will be defined by our waste. what we discard should give us pride,
not shame, because we know that we made the most of it.

there will not be races to create products for new seasons. the role of the
designer is not to make new things to feed into the ecosystem, but to fill in
the gaps of what might be missing, in nature and in narrative. designers will
be reclassed as design-researchers, and be knowledgeable behavioral
scientists and cultivators. they will be designing for improved lifestyles that
are more aware of the world at large — the earth and nature, as well as other
people and cultures.

khanh nguyen. 10001664@network.rca.ac.uk

i have always been fascinated by

libraries.
They are institutions of knowledge and
learning. They are the most accepted
example of communal, public lending
and borrowing. They are also one of
the rare universally positive interaction
points with the state, the government.

Over time, the history of libraries

has vacillated between
public and private. Now, a
public library has become
a hallmark of the childhoods of
many, a place of sanctuary that
people return to again and again.
Its role has extended far beyond
that of just a storage space of
books, an archive of the past.
The United States government
cites, in its citizenship welcome
packet, that a public library is the
best source for a new resident
to learn more about their
country and the resources it
offers. During the COVID-19
pandemic, libraries worldwide
became distribution centers for
tests. Libraries are places of
shelter for the unhoused, with
their easy access to amenities.
They are meeting places,
skill-building facilities:
the new community center.

They are also dying. The place of a library in our modern age has been called into question. Despite
many responsibilities being pushed onto them, they are underfunded and underappreciated.
What can be done? And what can we learn from them? This is what this project aims to explore.

khanh nguyen. 10001664@network.rca.ac.uk

 area of focus
I set myself the brief of creating a project that explores the role public libraries play in
communities, especially when it comes to regenerating culture and politics.

My response was Embassy of Libraries. The first part is a proposal for the expansion of libraries
into different levesl of community refuge. The second part is a fictional narrative experience to
contextualize and provoke discussion on the proposal, by way of a police investigation into artefacts
of the Prohibition Fiction era. Through the use of speculative narrative, the project dives into the
role of the public library as both state and refuge from it.

scale, audience city /neighborhood level

communities & councils

Before we follow the investigation,

let’s go back to the origins to see how
I got there. On the next page is a
Timeline of Thought to that highlights
key ideas, inspiration, and insights
from inception to close, including
how they circled back. The next few
pages shed detail into the illustration.

khanh nguyen. 10001664@network.rca.ac.uk

khanh nguyen. 10001664@network.rca.ac.uk
 initial exploration
I grew up taking advantage of the free, shared resources offered by public libraries, from
books to computers to simply a place to sit, relax, and explore. Libraries are a socially
accepted insitution of communal lending, borrowing, and sharing. People generally
understand the behaviors expected of them in a library.

The concept of a library has been stretched and expanded since its conception. For
example, the London-based Library of Things hopes to extend the objects from books to a
wide variety of objects members can borrow, including lawnmowers and cameras.

This is in line with the modern push for a sharing economy where we pool resources.
Examples include Airbnb, Lyft, Uber, Santander Cycles, Rent the Runway. But there are
issues: are they just microcosms of capitalism? They allow underused resources to be
enjoyed, but are they encouraging further consumption? What is the limit of sharing?
Where does privacy come in? What does ownership mean? What can’t be shared?

In my observation, while these

models discover and distribute
lost revenue streams, they
aren’t regenerative. The life
cycle of these products are still
degrading, perhaps even at a
faster rate because more
people are using them. Sharing
models for objects fall apart.
In my research, I came across
terms such as “contamination
interaction,” where objects
lent feel dirtied by the touch of
others, and the “endowment
effect,” in which the things we
own feel more valued than the
things others do.

Yet somehow books escape this.

A book does not lose value the
more it is shared. In fact,
narrative and knowledge
accumulates value as it spreads.
There may be something there.

khanh nguyen. 10001664@network.rca.ac.uk

 initial exploration
I thought about the power of narrative in building community. In my experience, getting a
great deal at a secondhand store is about more than just the item itself; it is about the story
of the hunt, the deal, the connection to the previous owner.

These spaces of tradition exchange can be informal, too. In Brooklyn, where I used to live, it
was pretty common for me to go for a walk and come back with an armful of exciting books,
left on the street by the neighborhood. My entire collection of cookbooks came from the
street. I’ve also found furniture ad hoc off the street. There’s something about the surprise
of discovering something that you weren’t necessarily looking for, and fitting it in to what
you already have.

At this point, I had some threads of insight about this method of ‘filling in the gaps.’ Stories,
too, do this, bridging between what has been preserved on the page and how people interact
with it. I realized I wanted to explore how libraries contribute to the regeneration of culture,
politics, community, and history, but I was still unsure how to weave everything together.

khanh nguyen. 10001664@network.rca.ac.uk

for research and
inspiration, i conducted a
literature
review.
the library, a fragile history. arthur der weduwen.

Coincidentally, the first book I saw on display when walking into my local public library.
Nonfiction book that detailed the history of the library, and made me realize the line
between public and private oscilated a lot, and that some commonly accepted rules such
as silence were a relatively new invention. The book also mentions how library collectives
first scorned fiction in its distribution since they didn’t think it beneficial and thought they
knew better about curating books than the masses, which will be relevant later.

>> library history. scorned fiction.

the atlas six. olivie blake.

Fiction book in which the Library of Alexandria was never lost, just went underground
and became a restricted research facility only accessible by a selected few. Got me thinking
about public versus private library settings and restricted versus unlimited library access.

Reading fiction is as crucial in my research & literature review as reading

nonfiction. It gives a different perspective on the material, allowing a richer
experience.
>> access. alternate history.

meaningful stuff: design that lasts. jonathan chapman.

One of the unit readings that stood out the most to me, and where I first learned of the
“endowment effect” and “contamination interaction” mentioned prior.

>> ownership. object narratives.

khanh nguyen. 10001664@network.rca.ac.uk

 research and
observation
I spent some time visiting the public libraries in my borough of Kensington and Chelsea,
namely the Brompton Library and the Kensington Central Library. I used my library card
to check out books, browsed and borrowed the recommended books, and studied in the
reading room with others. I also visited two libraries in the borough of Tower Hamlets,
which have changed their names to Idea Stores. The libraries are formatted like bookshops
and offer a variety of educational community activities; I visited Bow and Whitechapel.

From my observation, I found two major insight-themes:

library as refuge & safe space; the absence of expectation

The library is a communal refuge and neutral space. You can walk into a library with no
questions on why you are there and whether you belong. You can stay for an indefinite
amount of time with no expectations levelled on you regarding what you are contributing
with your presence.

generational bridge; communal silence.

The library is a community center, where people gather and meet each other. Outside of
school hours, many teenagers would hang out there. It is also a place of communal silence,
a rare form of sharing that is introvert-friendly. Many people, sometimes older, would
come solo and study or read in silence, yet they still get to enjoy the presence of others. In
this, there is potential for interaction between different groups and generations.

khanh nguyen. 10001664@network.rca.ac.uk

 i created some
diagrams
of services.
Diagram on side: shows the range of public
opinion on government services.

Diagram below: made to challenge my way of

thinking on general services to see if I could
combine public with invididual and collective
with private. Membership-based services such
as gyms allow resource sharing while still re-
quiring private access. Meanwhile, services like
restaurants are open to anyone in the public,
but the experience itself is invidualized.

khanh nguyen. 10001664@network.rca.ac.uk

interview & scope creep
I had the opportunity to interview a government librarian based in Canada who had also used
to volunteer at public libraries. One of the insights I gained was the problem of scope creep.
It is related to my concept of a library as a positive representation of the state. Libraries have
replaced community centers and the government sees them as convenient access points to the
community, as they have the established reputation and distribution network.

The scope of libraries has thus crept beyond just storage for books and areas for research.
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, libraries in Canada became the place where tests were
distributed. Her public library isn’t hiring a librarian next: they are hiring a social worker,
because they realized that a majority of their job involves working with children, sometimes
displaced. She also reminisces on community events run by the public library she volunteered
at as a teenager. While libraries expanding to fill the roles community centers left behind is a
positive thing, as they can do so much good for the community, they need to have the proper
funding and recognition in order to do so. Currently, libraries and librarians are overstretched
trying to accommodate for needs they are not qualified to cater to.

After this interview, I created a mini-comic illustrating the problem of scope creep through the
character of the Libreleon, a librarian-chameleon who has to constantly adapt to the needs of
the community. I thought I’d expand this into a children’s book to make explicit the growing
role of libraries despite diminishing budgets. However, I wanted to do more with my project
than just raising awareness.

khanh nguyen. 10001664@network.rca.ac.uk

 The library as a positive representation of the state,
already fulfilling state functions anyway due to scope creep,
led to my main concept which I debuted during the midpoint show:

library as state
what if there was a community built
around a library as a governing entity?

khanh nguyen. 10001664@network.rca.ac.uk

 I created a fictional state,
Media, based on values I
respect from public libraries.
so you want
to be a
med
ian
...
appli
cation
An application to Media involves
a filled-out form that will ask the
applicant the motivations behind
wanting to become a Median
citizen. Every four years, the
application will become available.
Shortlisted applicants will be
invited for a tour and in-person
panel interview. If we both agree
you are a good fit, we will do our
best to accommodate you in our
community. Unsuccessful applicants
are welcome to apply again the
next round, during which they will
have precedence.
Hopefuls can either choose to
fill out a Single, Couple, or Family
application.
participation in a city-state
The values of a library:
that genuinely cares about your success
ability to shape the narrative of Media
basic income and amenities. you will
universal access
want for nothing.
equity & equality
level playing field
priority of learning
community upskilling
bene testimo
fits nials
Citizenship comes with membership to
the Library, a governing body of
knowledge and resources. upon arrival to
Media, you will be matched with the job
you selected for your application. Every
year there is the opportunity to apply to
switch jobs. Citizens often rotate.
respon
sibilities
Each citizen of Media has to submit
a form every year that encompasses
their satisfaction with their current
circumstance, any desire to switch jobs,
and an allocation the percentage of
their income back towards the
community, ranking preferred services.
Each citizen is expected to be an
active participant in the Library,
contributing to community resources.
ori
gins
Median was founded in a quest
for a more regenerative culture.
At the heart of its founding is the
desire for equity and equality. That
is why it is named such: for every
citizen is a Median in the city-state,
selected for outstanding skill in one
department and mediocre skill in
another so that it all balances out in
the population curve. EveryMedian
has a standard basic income,
Resources are generated and
shared for the whole community.
At the core of Median is the Library,
through which citizens will access
every government service.
“I was working in a big city and
disatisfied with the meaningless aspect
of my job. The contrast after moving to
Media is extreme. At Media I am now
a Community Gardener and get to work
with my hands to grow the fruits and vegetables
that the city-state thrives on. I learned these
skills from the Library. I am so happy to see
the immediate fruits of my labor.”
“Growing up in a village,
I didn’t know if Media was for me.
The arrangement of the Library was
so different from all that I know. But
I took a chance and am happy to say
that the city-state still has a village
feel to it. I feel so connected to
my neighbors and inspired to build
for the upcoming generations.”
“I have always loved and respected
books since childhood, and spent a lot
of time in the libraries of my origin country.
When I heard about a government starting up
that was centered around a Library model,
I was excited but didn’t understand how it
could work. I’m proud to be one of the
first Librarians.”
I created a brochure for the speculative
governing system, aimed to recruit
potential members.
I wanted to use my speculative city-
state design to inform how a library can
transform in the near future.
khanh nguyen. 10001664@network.rca.ac.uk
 This morphed into a more
grounded concept, a proposal for
models for public libraries based on a
needs hierarchy.
The proposal highlights how public
libraries can properly adapt to scope
“Public libraries are expected to be
creep, basing community needs on responsive to the community.
Maslow’s hierarchy.
But the community might require
This was inspired by two quotes from more than the librarian knows.”
my interviews:

“Libraries need more recognition.

If it’s going to be a community center
it needs to have a variety of staff
and acknowledgement of the
different roles it plays.”

khanh nguyen. 10001664@network.rca.ac.uk

 Based on what the community is ready for, these Library
Embassies will be created at the appopriate pyramid level.
the library
as embassy Elevating libraries to the status of Embassy and equating them
to the State increases their importance and their power.
Libraries will start at the Respect Exchange level and then
progress to Local Initiative Accelerator, Career Launcher, and
Safe and Brave Space levels.

Each citizen has access to the community-state, from their ID

card. Participation can also earn them an embassy passport
with access to other states, though within the community this
doesn’t change their status: everyone is equal. Libraries will be
funded through state, corporate, and local support.

khanh nguyen. 10001664@network.rca.ac.uk

a speculative
narrative
I wanted to add a speculative lens to
contextualize the proposal. The idea of
saving and emphasizing the value of
public libraries isn’t necessarily new. A
2009 study funded by the Library
Research Association measured return
on investment for public libraries to
show their importance (result: 5:1).
I was inspired by speculative projects
such as the Timeline for the Far Future
of Libraries by Rachel Ivy Clarke, a
dystopian timeline that maps the birth
and death of libraries, and the Tedsig
Speculative Library Futures projects,
especially the Alternative Art History
project (which shows the value of
marginilia, writing on the margins of
books, and mutilation, tampering with
books) and the Alexandr.ia project (a
fake app proposal for Silicon Valley
investors to highlight how public
libraries can become profitable).
The final piece of my project took in
elements of its predecessors to become
the Embassy of Libraries, set in the
dystopian Prohibition Fiction era.
The story uses the community-state
proposal and the inception of the
pandemic as starting point where
the timeline diverges. It assumes
the proposal was successful, with
public libraries expanding to their
full potential and increased
government funding and support.
Then the pandemic hit and the
U.S. government diverted funds
to hospitals, backtracking to close
public libraries and return them to
nonfiction research archives, banning
fiction as a whole for being too
frivolous. The era, reminiscent of
the Prohibition era, saw the creation
of underground libraries in the form
of readeasies and disguises for fiction
books as people realized the role of
narrative and fiction in regenerating
culture. It culminated in the creation of
the Embassy of Libraries, a community-
state created to imbue the regenerative
values of public libraries.
khanh nguyen. 10001664@network.rca.ac.uk
 the
prohibition
investigation
fiction
I created an immersive experience to
tell this story in the form of a police
investigation. The narrative involved a
2-minute briefing video contexualizing
the era and the Embassy, as well as
artefacts part of the investigation.
Narrative is central to my practice and I
wanted to tell the story in this way as an
almost meta example of fictional
narrative as a persuasive argument.
Instead of just presenting the proposal
as is, I wanted to show different
potential futures: one where the
proposal did go forward and libraries
were expanded, and one where libraries
were taken away. The arc starts with a
modification of the Library proposal,
where the Embassy is pro-state and
Exhibit A: Draft of government proposal, Summer 2019.
supported by the government; details
Prohibition Fiction era artefacts as the
dystopia progresses; and then ends with
the establishing of the Embassy as an
anti-state refuge where the ideals of
public libraries are exemplified.
Squeezing this into a time-limited
presentation is confusing, and that is
the limit of the medium. My ideal final
product would be an immersive
experience where viewers are able to
watch the briefing video and explore
the artefacts at their own leisure, then
discuss the Embassy of Libraries
proposal and ideate on ways to improve
it and introduce it to their communities.
Reproduced below are the ten
artefacts in the narrative evidence list.
NEW ERA OF ‘PROHIBITION FICTION’ VOTED IN
By Khanh Nguyen
L
ast weekend, Congress
ratified the twenty-
eighth amendment to
the U.S. Constitution, known
by the public as ‘Prohibition
Fiction’. The ban of fiction
books will go into absolute
effect a year from now, with
phased stages implented
immediately.
Typically, amendments take
years between proposal and
ratification, as they have to go
through the lengthy process of
approval of both Congress and
state legislatures. The newest
amendment bypassed this as
it originated as an executive
declaration by the President
as part of emergency response
to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Amid rising infection rates and
death counts, public libraries
were targeted as the main
source of diverted government
funding to aid hospitals. This
will “kill two birds with one
stone,” declared the President
in a speech in March.
Public libraries, the President
reasoned, have been declining
in attendance and importance.
In order to spread the funding
and limit what librarians have
declared as ‘scope creep’, the
stretching to functions beyond
the library’s original purpose,
such as a day shelter for the
unhoused or a daycare for
children outside of school, the
function of libraries will be
streamlined to just academic
research. As part of the plan,
libraries will be consolidated
into nonfiction archives and
their staff reduced. All fiction,
deemed “frivolous, excessive,
and unneeded,” is therefore
banned. This ban will cover
public and private collections.
Exhibit B: Newspaper article about era, May 2020.
khanh nguyen. 10001664@network.rca.ac.uk
Political cartoon drawn in reaction to the passing of the amendment and its
subsidiary laws.
“Now is the time to pivot to
practical matters,” states a
government spokesperson.
“Why imagine utopias if we
can just all pitch in and create
one together? We are confident
that banning fiction books will
allow for a better allocation of
government resources and for
a more streamlined, efficient
America.”
Critics of this declaration have
stated that the government is
undervaluing the importance
of fiction in the education and
expansion of minds, and that
fiction has a larger role to play
than many usually dismiss.
“Fiction, narrative, and story-
telling connects us to others,”
one protestor explains. “We
practice empathy by placing
ourselves in the character’s
shoes, whether the willing
protagonist is someone from
the past or just a completely
different culture. We develop
critical thinking in response to
these stories. Fiction is crucial
to regenerate our cultures and
connections.”
“I use fiction as an escape,”
mourns another. “What will
happen now? If the state gets
to police what we can read,
what happens to freedom of
speech? And of expression?”
The debate on the relevance
of fiction is not a new one.
Throughout history, public
libraries have tried, in vain,
to encourage the reading of
nonfiction and discourage the
spread of fiction. With the goal
to educate, not to entertain,
public libraries did not want to
include fiction in their stores.
The novel used to be cited as a
source of insanity.
“We are just returning to the
original function of libraries,”
the government spokesperson
continues. “Librarians will be
happy that they can now focus
on their core job. Meanwhile,
the government funding is
now diverted to the crisis that
needs it. Ban fiction books to
save lives.” No commentary
was made on why military
spending has not also been
funneled towards hospitals.
“This is not the outcome I
expected when we spoke up
about scope creep,” one such
librarian states, referencing
the initiative the prior year
when librarians drummed up
support to increase funding
by illustrating how libraries
have grown to encompass the
full hierarchy of needs for the
communities they serve. “We
wanted to show how libraries
have changed and adapted to
new roles, filling the spaces
left by community centers.
Sure, this frees up some of my
time from acting as a de facto
social worker. I wonder at the
future for libraries now.”
The government has declared
a phased plan for eliminating
fiction from library shelves,
and decommissioning the
spaces to become makeshift
hospitals. They have not said
what they would do with the
books they remove from the
collections. It is likely they
will send them overseas. All
citizens will have the next
six months to dispose of their
private fiction collections via
public drop-off terminals at
their local libraries. Writers
and publishers will have to
take all fiction outside of their
circulation. The grace period
will expire a year from this
date, after which anyone in
posssession of a fiction book
in the United States will be
fined and possibly imprisoned.
Speaking negatively about the
new Prohibition Fiction era is
discouraged and may result
in fines. Those quoted in the
article remain anonymous. ♦
Exhibit C: Now-defunct public library cards. Exhibit D: Invitation to protest charity ball, US embassy in London, May 2022.

Exhibit E: Business card for suspected readeasy.

Exhibit F: Photographs of suspected readeasies.

Exhibit G: Confiscated privacy screen, suspect reading fiction e-book.

Exhibit I: Brochure
for Embassy of
Libraries.

Exhibit J: Passport
Exhibit H: Home-made book jackets to disguise for Embassy of
fiction books, created with consumer packaging. Libraries.

khanh nguyen. 10001664@network.rca.ac.uk

khanh nguyen. 10001664@network.rca.ac.uk
conclusion
The Library as Embassy aligns it as both with and against
the State: it is liaison between the community and the
government and it provides a refuge for stories and people
that may exist on the fringes of politics, culture, and history.

The ideal regenerative Embassy-Library is proactive and

reactive to community needs. It allows input from
community members and creates outputs that can be fed
back into the system. It follows the regenerative
manifesto by encouraging lending and borrowing; longevity;
and resourcefulness. It provides for the seventh generation
by creating channels for storytelling that fills in the gaps of
written records and encouraging interactions with positive
marginilia. Books become even more precious, and are not
discarded; material is preserved. Finally, it fosters
relationships within communities.

I hope this project will carry Libraries away from the

problem of scope creep to full scope realization,
as its role has expanded far beyond its original
purpose and needs the funding, support,
and recognition from the government
and community to fulfill that.

khanh nguyen. 10001664@network.rca.ac.uk