ABSTRACT
This type of library is normally dedicated to a person, subject or place. Typical of the genre is the Reagan Library, based upon US presidential papers, memoirs and personal artefacts. Typical also is the Ruskin Library where a collection of material by this famous Victorian artist, author and critic is housed as a self-contained annex to a university library. Like the Reagan Library, special collections normally contain a wide range of material – books, journals, newspaper cuttings, letters, drawings, photographs and videos. They also frequently include personal furniture and household goods (coffee cups, telephones, television sets, etc.), which help to create a well-rounded view of the individual involved. Specialist libraries dedicated to individuals are necessarily personal and sometimes idiosyncratic in nature. The challenge here is to design a library that captures the mood of the collection and which embraces the values of the person involved.
