The Morgan Library & Museum - McKim Building Renovation

2010
Beyer Blinder Belle
New York, NY

14,700 GSF

Museums & Galleries
Restorations
Education & Libraries

2011
IES National, Award of Merit
IES New York, Lumen Citation
IES Edwin C. Guth Memorial Award for Interior Lighting Design, Award of Excellence
AL Design Awards, Commendable Achievement for Interior Lighting

The design for this interior landmark employed technological and energy-efficient lighting upgrades to discretely reinforce the architecture with concealed fixtures and refurbished historical fittings, revitalizing the space and its artworks.

The library’s former entrance was transformed with new lighting integrated into the roof structure. The space’s painted ceiling and wall frescos, once lit with fluorescents, were replaced with two zones of dimmable lighting for optimal flexibility. Within the existing fluorescent housings, new linear LEDs with custom baffles graze the bookcases from above on the ground floor while shielding the fixture and reducing glare. The second and third tiers are lit from the glass floor of the catwalks to shield the light sources from visitors. Newly installed, freestanding cases were designed with fiber optics for internal lighting, highlighting items from the Morgan’s Collection and the once-private director’s office was repurposed and relighted as a gallery.

Using high color rendering lamps, the revamped lighting system allows visitors to fully appreciate the splendor of the library's decorative ceiling, which is the work of muralist Henry Siddons Mowbray (1858–1928), as well as the room's grand fireplace and the sixteenth-century tapestry that constitute its focal points.

The original pendant chandelier, preserved since its removal 70 years ago, was re-lamped with updated technology and re-hung at the entrance to the library.