From the life and net of a butterfly scientist

Vladimir Nabokov, often recognized as one of the greatest writers of the 20th century, was also from early childhood impassioned by a very different subject: butterflies.

Ready for a New Generation!

In 1982, Uris Library opened a new addition carved out of Libe Slope, featuring a panoramic window with glorious western views and very comfortable seating. It soon became known as the cocktail lounge, a popular spot for late-night studying and the occasional nap. In 2019, the well-loved room underwent a renovation to renew furnishings and equipment, and make it more accessible. This exhibition focuses on the design and renovation process.

The University Library building, later renamed Uris Library, opened on October 7, 1891, precisely twenty-three years after classes began at Cornell University. The architect, William Henry Miller, was Cornell’s first student of architecture, remembered through his many buildings on campus and portrait, which hangs in the Uris Library lobby. In addition to the library, with its iconic tower, he designed Barnes Hall, Stimson Hall, Boardman Hall, and Risley Hall, two fraternities, the A. D. White House, the Central Avenue Bridge, and Eddy Gate.

Half a century ago, life in John M. Olin Library looked very different — but the building itself is a long-standing symbol for generations of Cornellians. The exhibition on view in Olin and Uris libraries traces Olin’s history through photographs, drawings and artifacts. Beginning with Boardman Hall, the building that preceded Olin on the south side of the Arts Quad, it explores the state of Cornell’s libraries in the 1950s, which led to the building of one of the country’s largest university research libraries.

From May to September 2018, Library users were invited to record their thoughts on vintage typewriters set up in Olin and Uris libraries. Inspired by Notes from a Public Typewriter, the typewriters allowed Cornellians to connect with each other and the past. This exhibit spotlights the machines and some of the messages left by people who were experiencing manual typing for the first time, and others who were reconnecting with a bygone technology and with it, long-forgotten memories.

A curated tour through the President Andrew Dickson White Library, the historic heart of Cornell's first library, and iconic university landmark. This online exhibition explores the architecture, history, and people associated with the A. D. White Library.

Cornell's trees are at the core of the beauty of the university's campus, but of course they are also so much more.

WOMEN EMPOWERED: Fashions from the Frontline chronicles how women have strategically and persistently used fashion to empower and uplift. From activists to politicians, academics to servicewomen, artists to athletes, entertainers and everyday unsung heroes, WOMEN EMPOWERED uses fashion to tell the stories of women on the frontlines. The exhibit is therefore organized according to physical spaces--The Street, The Government, The Stage, The Sports Arena, The Academy--where fashion transforms, at times transgresses, and ultimately empowers.