What does it mean to work in a Modernist masterpiece? How is a ‘humanist’ space used? The author’s personal perspective on the architectural elements of the Reference Library at the Yale Center for British Art illuminates the humanistic aspects of Louis I. Kahn’s design. He focusses specifically on the material surfaces of white oak, wool, formed concrete, and their interplay with natural light in the library. Architectural elements such as the wood library carrels, concrete pillars, and exterior and interior windows of the library are considered in relation both to Kahn’s perceptions of a library and to his use of these elements in the museum as a whole.

The historic site of the French national library is currently being renovated in order to become a major centre for art documentation and special collections. It will incorporate three separate institutions: the specialist departments of the Bibliothèque nationale de France, the library of the Institut national d’histoire de l’art, and the library of the Ecole nationale des Chartes. Completion of the project is scheduled for 2017.

Nearly four years ago, the University of the Arts London launched its first flexible learning space for students, called the Learning Zone. The service model for the space was underpinned by an ethos of peer support. When London’s Crossrail Development project necessitated relocation, the Learning Zone team had to build the service all over again. Learning Zone 2.0 was a chance to reflect on the use and design of the space . . . and to improve on the first version. Despite personnel changes, building delays and lost furniture and equipment, the new space opened in May 2010.

Central Saint Martin’s move to a prestigious new site at King’s Cross is part of the most significant redevelopment project in London in the last 150 years. The Library will inhabit a 19th-century grain store, the Granary building, designed by Lewis Cubitt. To date the process of planning the library has included work with base build architects Stanton Williams, the fit out architects Pringle Brandon, library consultants The Design Concept and Embervision, and suppliers Demco.

The Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library at Columbia University in the City of New York is one of the world’s great architectural research libraries. In addition to its commitment to maintaining a comprehensive collection of bibliographic and archival materials for architecture, the library, its staff and services directly support academic programs in architecture, urban planning, historic preservation, art history and archaeology, as well as the liberal arts education of undergraduates. The Avery is also home to the Avery index to architectural periodicals. As publisher of this leading abstracting and indexing resource for research in architecture and related topics, the Avery is solely responsible for all editorial, business and technical operations and serves as an authoritative source for the terminology and literature of the field.

London’s Victoria and Albert Museum, the UK’s national museum of art and design, recently created a new centre for public learning through creative design. The development process was key to the project, which has resulted in one of the most innovative and attractive learning spaces in any museum today. Research, consultation and collaboration, involving the people who are going to use the building and the architects/designers from the outset, has been an approach that has worked very successfully.