Snøhetta’s new library transforms the american prairie into architecture

Following the Far Rockaway Library in New York (2024) and the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library in North Carolina, which is still under construction, Snøhetta returns to the United States with a project that redefines the meaning of a library in the digital age. Such is the case with the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library, which is set to open on 4 July 2026 to mark the 250th anniversary of the United States, in Medora, North Dakota: not merely a place for the dissemination of knowledge, but a territorial infrastructure in which architecture, landscape and biodiversity combine to create a direct experience of nature and its conservation. The building is situated on the crest of a hill overlooking the Badlands, on a 93-acre site on the edge of Theodore Roosevelt National Park, in the heart of the United States’ largest mixed-grass prairie.

Craig Dykers, CEO of Snøhetta

The main volume, blending into the topography of the hill, disappears beneath an accessible roof planted with native species, offering views of the grassland and the starry sky: a well-established design strategy of Snøhetta’s which — from the Norwegian National Opera and Ballet in Oslo (2008) to the Shanghai Grand Opera House (2026) — once again transforms architecture into a natural extension of the landscape, blurring the boundaries between building and landscape.

As Craig Dykers, a founding partner of Snøhetta, states: "Theodore Roosevelt understood that conservation is not simply about protecting land, it is about defining our relationship to the world and our responsibility to future generations. His conservation ethic emerged from a profound encounter with the American landscape, and we wanted visitors to experience that same sense of discovery. Rather than placing a building within the landscape, we sought to make the landscape itself the primary act of architecture. Every path, every view, and every material decision is designed to deepen the connection between people and place, transforming a visit into an encounter with the earth. In doing so, the library becomes more than a repository of history, it becomes an invitation to engage with the values of stewardship, civic responsibility, and wonder that continue to define Roosevelt's legacy".

Inside, interactive exhibition spaces, temporary galleries, a theater, and technological infrastructure dedicated to the preservation and access of digital collections are bathed in natural light filtering through large windows overlooking Roosevelt’s Elkhorn Ranch and skylights in the roof. Renewable and locally sourced materials—laminated timber structures, reclaimed regional wood, rammed-earth walls, and low-carbon concrete—along with passive climate control strategies and energy efficiency measures aim to meet the requirements of Living Building certification, the most rigorous international standard for regenerative construction.

But it is above all “beyond” the architecture that the project reveals its ambition. A constellation of pavilions and a network of footpaths extend the library experience out into the prairie, transforming the landscape into a space for observation, learning and healing. More than 200 native plant species, many of which have been drastically reduced in North Dakota’s ecosystems, have been gradually reintroduced to rebuild the original plant communities and enhance the site’s biodiversity. The library thus takes the form of a living laboratory for ecological restoration, where conservation is a dynamic process to be understood and shared. As Michelle Delk, Partner and Head of Landscape at Snøhetta, points out: “the landscape is not the setting for this project, it is its primary teacher. Through restoration, access, and immersion, we sought to create opportunities for visitors to experience the ecological processes, seasonal changes, and living systems that continue to shape the Badlands. Our goal was to frame a landscape that invites exploration and discovery while demonstrating that stewardship is not a fixed goal, but an ongoing practice. As visitors move through restored prairie, encounter native species, and witness the rhythms of land management, they become participants in an evolving ecosystem. In this way, the landscape becomes something to engage with, care for, and learn from".