Mary G Johnson's List: Library Design

In 2009, The Fisher-Watkins Library underwent a digital transformation. The Academy replaced the majority of the library's 20,000 printed books with electronic sources and our collection has now become the largest of any independent school in the country. We wanted to create a library that reflected the reality of how students do research and fostered what they do -- one that went beyond the stacks and embraced the digital future.

Getting a glimpse into the curious minds of others has never been so beautiful - or so bright. Designers Brian W. Brush and Yong Ju Lee of E/B Office New York created an extensive fiber-optic installation for the Teton County Library grand opening in Wyoming that visualizes library searches in flashes of colored light. Dubbed Filament Mind, the installation, which opened at the end of January, uses over five miles of fiber-optic cables and 44 LED illuminators to collect, categorize, and render searches from libraries all across the state of Wyoming into glowing bursts of color. Visualizations begin when a person uses specific words while searching online library catalogs.