Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library

See also Wikipedia's article about "Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library".

Main level of Avery Library

The Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library, located in Avery Hall, collects books and periodicals in architecture, historic preservation, art history, painting, sculpture, graphic arts, decorative arts, city planning, real estate, and archaeology. It is the largest library of architecture in the US, with more than 400,000 volumes, most of which are non-circulating. The Ware collection, focused on urban planning and related fields, does circulate.

Its reading rooms are very quiet, including one on the lower level designated for graduate study (though I've never seen an undergraduate kicked out). There's a strict prohibition against food and drinks here that's more stringently enforced than in other libraries, but there's a cafe in the basement of Avery Hall called Brownie's that you can reach by taking the stairs just outside the library's entrance.

The library rarely has any room on the photogenic top floor, but cubicles and large tables can be found on the lower levels. You can sneak into the architecture library, although it closes early.

External links

• Columbia University Libraries: Avery Library