Bookmarks Children’s Library is a one-of-a-kind and well-loved collaboration between the City of Dallas and NorthPark Center, one of the most innovative shopping centers in the country. Bookmarks is home to an ongoing series of children’s educational and reading programs, as well as a place of respite for weary parents and grandparents.

DSGN designed Bookmarks to appeal to kids, without talking down to them with design cliches. The 2,400 square foot facility is designed around a bright red feature wall, that zooms from storefront through the space to the story-telling space. The wall not only announces the library to mall pedestrians, it provides a variety of kid-sized nooks, desks, and cubbies for reading, working, drawing, and just hanging out.

Other features include sponsored “story steps”, oversized “grandparent” chairs for reading to tots, and plenty of places for kids to curl up with a book or a laptop, with or without a grown-up. Materials were selected to be bright, durable, and low maintenance. Paintings by a local artist depict contemporary interpretations of classic storybook tales.

DSGN’s services were comprehensive starting with developing the naming, logo and logotype, as well as all interior design and construction documentation.