The Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Yale University
Captured during a group expedition of Minnesota–based architectural photographers, this shoot resurrects a cherished annual tradition: documenting mid‑century modern and brutalist architecture. In 2020, the group turned its lens toward Yale’s iconic Beinecke Library - renowned for its striking Modernist presence amidst collegiate Gothic surroundings.
The library’s defining characteristic—its marble “windows” - diffuse daylight softly throughout the interior, creating an ambient glow that underscores the structure’s poetic interplay of light, material, and form. During this trip, our collective aim was to honor those qualities: to explore shifts in perspective, exposure, and composition that reveal both the power and subtlety of Bunshaft’s masterpiece.
Architect: Gordon Bunshaft, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill
Constructed: 1960–1963, with official opening in October 1963
Recognitions & Significance: A marquee example of mid-century modern design, it earned attention for its translucent 1¼‑inch Vermont marble façade - filtering light to protect rare manuscripts - and its dramatic six-story glass book stack that holds approximately 180,000 Designed in the International Style, it’s widely celebrated as an architectural “jewel box” and modernist icon .
© 2019 jc buck
