Foster & Partners · 11 March 2007 by Mary Johnson
The Great Court was designed by Foster and Partners.
A Purse Full of Stories · 10 March 2007 by Mary Johnson
150 Years of Public Libraries
I came to the Environment course with a specific area I wanted to explore. It begins with this commemorative 50p celebrating 150 years of public libraries.
This links to the 2nd lecture by Colin Porteous, where he spoke about Peckham Library which opened in 2000 and was the showcase for the 150 years celebrations. However, it is not Peckham Library I want to explore but ...
The Johnson's Dictionary · 10 March 2007 by Mary Johnson
Which takes me back to the Heart of The British Library and the King’s Library.
The King's Library · 10 March 2007 by Mary Johnson
In 2003, on the 250th anniversary of the British Museum, the newly restored King’s Library Gallery opened, featuring an exhibition titled Enlightenment: Discovering the World in the 18th Century.
The Great Court · 10 March 2007 by Mary Johnson
In 2000 The Queen Elizabeth II Great Court opened. A space that had been hidden from public view since 1857, was now transformed with a spectacular glass roof connecting the central Reading Room with the backs of the Museum buildings forming the largest covered public square in Europe .
King George III · 10 March 2007 by Mary Johnson
When he died in 1820 his collection was passed onto his son, George IV. As the new King had more desires on ample accommodation for himself than for knowledge gained from books, he gifted the library to the British nation in 1823.
In 1828 The King’s Library took up home at the British Museum, where it stayed until 1998. It then moved to the site at St Pancras and the newly built British Library.
The space that was created at the British Museum by the move was soon developed.
The Heart of The British Library · 10 March 2007 by Mary Johnson
to the central arm of the A which holds the King’s Library and forms the heart of the British Library.
The King’s Library is considered one of the most significant collections of the Enlightenment Period and was the collection of King George III.
Piazza · 10 March 2007 by Mary Johnson
To Eduardo Paolozzi’s take on William Blake’s Sir Isaac Newton ...
Portico · 10 March 2007 by Mary Johnson
the main entrance of the library – the Portico – that is reminiscent of the spine of a book !
The British Library · 10 March 2007 by Mary Johnson
The British Library is also relatively young as it opened in 1998. It was built on a derelict goods yard, west of St Pancras Station. This was the largest site closest to the British Museum that could house the libraries collections.
The architect, Colin St John Wilson, transformed the area into an environment for learning. So much so, that every inch echoes knowledge in some way. From the mere shape of the site, which forms the letter A to