Originally opened in 1923, the library for years only allowed entry to about a dozen scholars per year; however, that has significantly changed during the past few decades. The library began opening its doors to a broader audience, granting access requests from the general public and encouraging students and scholars from all academic levels to use the collections.

"We’re thrilled to welcome people back to a space that we’re very proud of," said Clements Library Director J. Kevin Graffagnino in a statement. "There are many alumni who studied here and have probably never had the opportunity to step inside, which is something we really want to change."

The renovation included updates to the building’s plumbing, wiring, climate control, fire suppression and security systems. Improvements extended to all three floors of the building, and new construction focused on a two-level underground addition that includes a 3,000-square-foot, climate-controlled storage space. The completely revitalized lower level includes renovated curatorial offices, collections and preservation work spaces, meeting rooms and a larger room to be used for class visits, lectures and larger meetings.

Designed by Michigan Architect Albert Kahn, the library has been a central landmark on the U-M campus since opening. It is named after William L. Clements, the building’s benefactor, an Ann Arbor native, U-M alumnus and former university regent. Clements made his fortune supplying equipment for the construction of the Panama Canal. As his personal wealth grew, he began collecting the rare books and manuscripts that now comprise a large portion of the library’s collection, which is one of the most comprehensive collections of early American history in the world.

A large part of the collection relates to the American Revolution. In fact, Clements found descendants of key influencers in the Revolution (Lord Shelburne, General Sir Henry Clinton, General Nathanael Greene, to name a few) and bought their ancestors’ papers to bring back to Ann Arbor. Other highlights include documents relating to the discovery of North America, Native American history, the American Civil War, the anti-slavery movement and the exploration westward, according to a statement.

During construction, the library remained open in an off-campus facility and continued to specialize in preserving and collecting original primary source documents from 1492 to 1900.
 

The post University of Michigan Library Reopens After Extensive Renovation appeared first on School Construction News.

The renovation project transformed the building once known as the New Bodleian into a multimedia space with an exhibition hall, lecture theater, digital-ready classrooms, conservation and imaging workshops, office space, a café and reading rooms. The facility is made up of six aboveground stories with three underground stacks, reported Harvard Magazine, and was designed by London-based Wilkinson Eyre Architects.

Richard Ovenden, Bodley’s librarian since 2014, told Harvard Magazine that the main goal of the project was to create “better interactions between manuscript archives, rare books and people.” As such, the library doesn’t look like a traditional library at first glance. Its large atrium greets visitors with the same grand statement that a museum would. A glass-walled circle of stacks floats above the entrance hall, and walls feature two 70-inch Samsung touch-screen displays.

The two exhibition galleries allow visitors to see some of the library’s historic archives, rather than hiding them from view as in the past. For instance, the Treasury will house university treasures such as the Magna Carta and Gutenberg Bible, on the First Folio on semi-permanent display, according to Harvard Magazine. The other exhibition gallery will house special exhibitions.

While visitors are able to interact with these exhibitions, there is a notable division between public and research spaces. Once allowed access, scholars can take advantage of the library’s new reading rooms that open up level by level. This section of the library also incorporates teaching spaces such as the lecture theater and five seminar rooms.

The renovation was partially funded with generous donations from a number of donors. The largest was about $37 million (£25 million) from the Garfield Weston Foundation — hence the name change to Weston Library — which was matched by Oxford University Press. Another about $7.5 million (£5 million) was gifted to the project by Julian Blackwell, president of Blackwell’s and whose Oxford store sits adjacent to the Weston Library site. This additional funding allowed the development of the Blackwell Hall, the library’s new entrance hall.

The post Oxford Library Enters the Digital Age appeared first on School Construction News.