The Ringling College of Art and Design officially opened and dedicated its new Alfred R. Goldstein Library on Wednesday, Jan. 25, with celebratory words from those most responsible for its creation on the campus, followed by tours of the three-story, state-of-the-art building, which students have already been using for about two weeks.

The 46,000-square-foot building more than quadruples the space of the previous Verman Kimbrough Library (that building will be “repurposed,” according to college president Larry Thompson). It houses approximately 75,000 items, from books and periodicals to films and video games, offers 10 group study/meeting rooms and four terraces overlooking the campus and beyond, two learning commons/computer labs, a number of “quiet and collaborative” spaces, furniture showpieces that include work of designers such as Gehry and Eames, and a mural (Momentum, by Ringling alum Julie Kanapaux) that spreads across all three floors.

After those speeches, from Thompson, board chair Dean Eisner, director of library services Kristina Keogh, former director (and instigator of the new library, more than a decade ago) Kathleen List, architect Angela E. Watson, Willis Smith Construction president David Sessions, and trustees Carolyn Johnson and Isabel Norton--and praise for the library’s namesake, Alfred R. Goldstein, who sat in the audience--the ribbon was cut and guests poured into the building to check it out.

The new library will feature 24-hour access for faculty, staff and students; and, interestingly, the floors are intended to be quieter the higher you go.

Here are a few photos of the event and the library.