On the Greek island of Kimolos, open-air libraries have placed books in some unexpected settings, from handmade displays along village streets and traditional chests to painted boats beside the Aegean Sea.
The free lending library has become one of the island’s distinctive community initiatives, providing residents and visitors with access to books without the need for a conventional library building. The project was launched in the summer of 2016 and later expanded to the coast with four boat-shaped libraries at Psathi and the beaches of Aliki, Bonatsa, and Prasa.
A library without walls: The open-air libraries on the Greek island of Kimolos
The Open Lending Library of Kimolos was established by the island’s volunteer group, the Kimolistes, with the goal of making books accessible in everyday public spaces. From the very beginning, the idea was to place books throughout the village so residents and visitors could borrow, take, or contribute books free of charge. Rather than keeping the collection at a conventional library, the volunteers created original displays that became part of the streetscape.
Books have appeared in repurposed trunks, a traditional plate rack, and other handmade structures. One of the most distinctive ideas involved displaying books on branches, turning an ordinary part of the village landscape into an informal bookshelf. The idea behind this is simple: take a book, read it, and return it or leave another for someone else. In this way, the library becomes part of the experience of walking through Kimolos rather than a place people have to deliberately visit.
From the village to the beaches
In 2019, the open-air library on Kimolos expanded beyond the village with four new boat book displays, extending the project to some of Kimolos’ coastal spaces. The boat libraries were placed at Psathi, the island’s port, as well as the beaches of Aliki, Bonatsa, and Prasa. The Kimolistes described them as both lending libraries and works of art.
Constructed in Athens and painted on Kimolos, the boats feature designs by painter Eleni Teknopoulou, who traveled from Ammouliani in Halkidiki to the island for the project. Each boat has its own design, incorporating messages about reducing single-use plastics and protecting the seas.
The project was a contribution by the A. C. Laskaridis Charitable Foundation through its SeaChange Greek Islands program, with the Kimolistes serving as the program’s ambassadors on Kimolos. The combination of books, boats, and environmental messages makes the libraries particularly fitting for their seaside setting.
Books at open-air libraries beside the Aegean on Kimolos
For visitors arriving at one of Kimolos’ beaches, the sight of a small painted boat filled with books is an unusual one. Rather than serving a traditional maritime purpose, these boats transform the familiar image of a Greek island fishing or sailing boat into a place where people can discover something to read.
The concept extends the idea behind the original village library by bringing books into spaces where people naturally gather. Reading is not confined to a building or a particular type of space. It can happen anywhere, including beside the sea. Visitors can browse the collection, choose a book, and take it to a nearby spot overlooking the Aegean, turning a simple beach outing into an opportunity for reading.
The people behind the project
The Kimolistes began organizing volunteer work in 2011, initially focusing on practical efforts such as cleaning beaches and caring for public spaces in the village. Over time, their initiatives expanded to environmental and cultural ones, with the open-air library on Kimolos becoming one of their most well-known projects.
The volunteers credit residents, organizations, publishers, and others who donated books and materials with helping the library grow. The Municipality of Kimolos also made public spaces available for the installations, helping bring the project into the island’s everyday landscape. The library received further recognition in 2019, when the Kimolistes were presented with the Mary Konstantaropoulou Award for the Open Lending Library of Kimolos by the Greek section of IBBY, the International Board on Books for Young People.
A different kind of cultural space
What makes the Kimolos project particularly interesting is that the library is not confined to a single location. Instead, it appears throughout the island in different forms, with books becoming part of the streetscape in the village and being housed in painted boats along the coast.
These installations serve a practical purpose while also becoming small pieces of public art, reflecting a broader community effort to make cultural activities accessible to everyone. There is no entrance fee and no need to plan a visit around library hours. The books are simply placed where people live, walk, and spend their summers, making reading part of everyday life on the island.
From village streets to the shoreline
The boat libraries are perhaps the most recognizable part of the project, but they are best understood as an extension of the original village initiative. Kimolos first experimented with open-air lending libraries in 2016, and three years later, the idea reached the beaches with four boat-shaped installations.
Together, the different locations create an unusual network of reading spaces across the island, connecting the village and the shoreline through the same simple idea: books should be available to people wherever they are.
For a Greek island known for its beaches and Cycladic landscape, it is an especially fitting way to bring culture into everyday life. A book might be waiting in the village or beside the sea, and in Kimolos, finding one can be as simple as taking a walk.
See all the latest news from Greece and the world at Greekreporter.com. Contact our newsroom to report an update or send your story, photos and videos. Follow GR on Google News and subscribe here to our daily email!
