Art & Architecture

Culminates multiyear effort to unite Library collections and services in central, state-of-the-art space

This article was originally published in UCSB’s The Current. 

The new Sara Miller McCune Arts Library will open to the public on Monday, December 2. 

The creation of this thoughtfully designed and vibrant new space with state-of-the-art technology on the main Library’s 1st floor Mountain Side was made possible by the generosity of philanthropist, arts lover, and longtime UCSB donor Sara Miller McCune. The gift was made in collaboration with McCune’s social science publishing company, Sage Publishing. 

The new Arts Library is opening in late fall quarter. 

Art & Architecture and Music print collections are inaccessible for public browsing until the opening of the Arts Library but can be requested via UC Library Search. 

UCSB Library is creating a new Arts Library by bringing together the Music and Art & Architecture Collections into a modernized space on the main Library’s 1st floor Mountain Side. 

The Music Library will permanently close to the public starting Monday, August 5. 

UCSB Library is creating a new Arts Library by bringing together the Music and Art & Architecture Collections into a modernized space on the Library’s 1st floor Mountain Side where the Art & Architecture Collection is currently housed. As part of the project, the Music Library collection and services will be moved from the Music Building to the main Library. 

The Art & Architecture space – inclusive of collections and study space – will be closed to the public for construction starting Monday, April 1. 

Project Will Combine Music and Art & Architecture Collections in Modernized Space in Main Library

UC Santa Barbara Library is planning a new Arts Library by bringing together the Music and Art & Architecture Collections into a modernized space in the main Library building. The project will bring together all library services under one roof for the first time since 1969.

As of September 12, 2022, the Services Desk located inside the Art & Architecture Collection on the First Floor Mountain Side of the UCSB Library, is closed. A FAQ is provided below with information on how to access collections and services that were previously offered from the desk. 

How can I access Art & Architecture Closed Stacks materials?

The Albert and Elaine Borchard Foundation issued a $10,000 grant to the UC Santa Barbara Library for the digitization of a portion of the Marcel Nicolle Collection, which consists of more than 1,000 rare 19th-century exhibition catalogs in Western European languages, mostly French. 

Allen Cohen, a retired UCSB librarian, is an active member of the Santa Barbara literary and arts scene. He avidly reads, borrows, and collects books; attends concerts and plays; takes classes on chess, Shakespeare, and short stories; participates in book clubs at the public library; admires and collects art (with a focus on student work); and donates generously to the activities he cherishes. The arts and culture, Allen said, “are a significant reason for us to go on living.”