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The Ryerson & Burnham Libraries, formed by the merger of
the Ryerson Library and the Burnham Library of Architecture in
1957, comprise one of this nation's premier research collections
for the study of art and architecture. Art books have been purchased
by The Art Institute of Chicago since 1879 when each student paid
a two dollar fee for book acquisitions. By 1884 there were 200
books in the collection. In 1901 Martin A. Ryerson, a trustee
of the Art Institute since 1880, donated $50,000 to build a new
library. Named after its benefactor, the Ryerson Library was designed
by the architects Shepley, Rutan, and Coolidge of Boston and built
in a former courtyard of the 1893 building. The skylight was designed
by Louis J. Millet and the decorative color scheme—restored
in 1994—was designed by Elmer Garnsey, who created the decorative
scheme for the Jefferson Building of the Library of Congress.
In a response to a request in 1905 from W.M.R. French, Director
of the Art Institute, for a list of architectural titles that
the Institute should purchase, Daniel H. Burnham, the renowned
architect and urban planner, replied with a list of seventy-five
titles and stated: "An adequate architectural library is
one of the notable lacks in the intellectual resources of Chicago..."1
Burnham died in 1912, bequeathing $50,000 for the creation of
a library of architecture. A trustee Committee on Burnham Library
was immediately formed to provide guidance for the creation of
the Burnham Library.
Although funded separately by the Art Institute, the Ryerson
Library and the Burnham Library shared many resources over the
years, including a single administrative director. Due to financial
necessity the two libraries merged their operations in 1957 as
the Ryerson & Burnham Libraries and 1967 saw the opening of
an expanded four story reading, stack, and exhibition space designed
by C.F. Murphy Associates and Brenner Danforth Rockwell. The Art
Institute's Department of Architecture was formed in 1981 with
the transfer of some 40,000 drawings and architectural fragments
from the Burnham Library collections. John Zukowsky, former archivist
of architectural drawings for the Libraries, was named as Curator.
The Reading Room of the Libraries, which was the centerpiece
of the original Shepley, Rutan, and Coolidge Ryerson Library,
was fully restored in 1994 (the Louis Millet skylight was restored
in 1988).
1 This history is drawn extensively from Mary
Woolever's "The Burnham Library of Architecture: A History," The
Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies, vol. 13, no. 2 (1988):
107-117, 169-170. Burnham is cited from his letter of August 11,
1905 (Woolever: 107).
The Libraries are generously supported by The
Friends of the Ryerson & Burnham Libraries.
If you have further questions or comments regarding this information,
please contact the Reference Desk at (312) 443-3666 during our
regular hours.
If you are researching an art related topic, Beginning
Your Art or Architecture Research can get you started.
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