Denver Central Library
Michael Graves; Klipp Colussy Jenks DuBois · Denver, United States · 1996
Michael Graves's expansion gave Denver's Central Library a distinct postmodern civic presence beside Civic Center Park. The project retained and enlarged Burnham Hoyt's earlier library, combining new reading rooms, public circulation and a varied composition of coloured volumes. The south-facing rotunda makes the reading programme visible in the building's external form. Inside, the celebrated Western History Reading Room brings an expressive timber structure into a public setting for study, connecting the institution with architectural references to the region's working landscapes. Visiting: A working public library with free general entry. The expanded library opened in 1995; the architects list project completion in 1996.