The Ryerson Library (built 1901) and the Burnham Library of Architecture (founded in 1912) form a research collection of national and international significance, one of the largest art museum libraries in the world. The Reading Room, which constituted the original Ryerson Library, was designed by Shepley, Rutan and Coolidge, the architects of the 1893 building on Michigan Avenue. It was restored to its original design and finishes in 1994.

Physically merged in 1957, the Libraries hold extensive collections of monographs on art and architecture, exhibition catalogs, art and architecture journals, auction sales catalogs, microfilm and microfiche, pamphlet files, and archival materials. Both cataloged and on-order materials can be searched via the Libraries' catalog. The Libraries also provide access to a wide range of research databases.