The Exhibition. Birkerts. Libraries. Light.

The exhibition dedicated to the 100th anniversary of Gunārs Birkerts (1925–2017) presents the life and creative work of the outstanding Latvian architect. Among the many public buildings designed by Gunārs Birkerts, libraries have a special place – this exhibition is dedicated to them.

The exhibition features 19 libraries designed by Gunārs Birkerts – the NLL building and 18 libraries in the USA. The most famous of them are the University of Michigan Law Library, the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Library (public library and university library) in San Jose, and the Duluth Public Library. The culmination of the architect’s creative life was the construction of the National Library of Latvia.
The exhibition consists of photographs, sketches, and building models. It highlights the architect’s special relationship with light. Gunārs Birkerts is often called a master of light architecture, surprising light solutions are revealed in each of his buildings, especially in library designs. The exhibition was made in cooperation with the NLL Foundation, and the US Embassy in Latvia. Its authors are architects Jānis Dripe and Andris Kronbergs, the graphic design was created by Tatjana Raičiņeca.
Gunārs Birkerts is a world-renowned Latvian architect who has designed almost 300 buildings – museums, universities, churches, schools, libraries. Many of them can be considered to be iconic. Birkerts’ works combine functionality and the use of symbols and metaphors.