Fisher (Furness) Fine Arts Library

Fisher (Furness) Fine Arts Library

Fisher (Furness) Fine Arts Library by Frank Furness, 1890

The Fisher Fine Arts Library is a National Historic Landmark on the University of Pennsylvania’s main campus. Completed in 1890 by the famous Philadelphian architect Frank Furness, the building is a fusion of train station and cathedral stylings. The building has received modifications throughout the years including additions made in 1916, 1922, and 1931. The 1931 addition now hosts the University’s Arthur Ross Gallery space. About a century after its completion, the building required restoration which occurred from 1986 – 1991. Following the restoration the building was renamed the Anne and Jerome Fisher Fine Arts Library for their considerable contribution to the project. Frank Furness was, during his time and throughout the 20th century, a rather controversial architect. His work was often regarded as gaudy, crass, and outdated when compared to the preferred neoclassical style of the late 19th century. This opinion continued well into the mid-twentieth century wherein modern and sleek lines were highly regarded. While Furness designed somewhere around half a dozen libraries during his lifetime, the Fisher Fine Arts Library is a landmark to Philadelphians for its cherished relationship to the University of Pennsylvania. “Frank Furness's building, then, was perhaps the only library to treat the act of reading as an active and dynamic enterprise. The building is an engine of active thought, divided into four separate volumes, each serving a different function and assuming a different shape, “remarks Michael Lewis in his 2009 article entitled “This Library Speaks Volumes”, featured in The Wall Street Journal. The ability for students over the decades to interact with Furness’ library, even today, keeps mutual experience alive. Tradition and innovation have deep roots at the University of Pennsylvania but would not be possible without a profound eye for preservation of the past.

1890

Locust Walk, Near 35th and Walnut intersection

Red sandstone, brick-and-terra-cotta, glass