Phillips Exeter Academy Library

Exeter, United States

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Phillips Exeter Academy Library in Exeter, New Hampshire, designed by Louis Kahn and completed in 1971, is the largest secondary school library in the world, housing 160,000 volumes across nine levels with a shelf capacity of 250,000 volumes. Commissioned in 1965 after the school rejected a traditional design in favor of contemporary architecture, the library showcases Kahn's distinctive structural philosophy through three concentric square rings: an outer ring of load-bearing brick containing the exterior walls and carrel desks, a middle ring of reinforced concrete supporting the heavy book stacks, and a dramatic inner atrium with enormous circular openings that reveal multiple floors of stacks. The building received the American Institute of Architects' Twenty-five Year Award in 1997, recognizing its enduring architectural significance.