Editing Robarts Library (section)

==Architecture==
[[File:Fort Book.jpg|upright|thumb|Detailed view of the upper-level exterior]]
The design of the Robarts Library complex was headed by Mathers & Haldenby Architects with consultation from Warner, Burns, Toan & Lunde, the New York architectural firm whose earlier works included the libraries at [[Cornell University|Cornell]] and [[Brown University|Brown]] universities and who specialized in [[precast concrete]] buildings. Coinciding with the [[Canadian Centennial]] celebrations, the initial plan was expanded to add three more storeys to the original design. Construction of the library began in 1968 and completed in 1973, at a cost of over $40 million.

Robarts Library occupies a {{convert|3|acre|m2|adj=on}} site on a field of open space and mature tree cover. The building rests on an equilateral triangle footprint with each side measuring {{convert|330|ft|m}}, the same length as a [[Canadian football field]] from goal post to goal post.<ref name="U of T Q&A">[http://www.newsandevents.utoronto.ca/bios/02/history51.htm U of T Q&A] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080225133612/http://www.newsandevents.utoronto.ca/bios/02/history51.htm |date=2008-02-25 }} Quote: ''Each side of the equilateral triangle is {{convert|330|ft|m}} long - the length of a Canadian football field from goal post to goal post - and it can provide space for 4,000 persons at any one time.''</ref> The building is oriented such that one side of the equilateral triangle faces west while the other two sides face northeast and southeast. From the southeast corner, the building appears as a [[peacock (bird)|peacock]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Construction begins on Robarts Library expansion |url=https://www.utoronto.ca/news/construction-begins-robarts-library-expansion |website=U of T News |publisher=University of Toronto |quote=One challenge for Diamond Schmitt Architects was to complement the architecture of the peacock-shaped Robarts, a heritage building of brutalist architecture so iconic it inspired a video game.}}</ref>

The elevation is mostly concrete, albeit differing in textures and directionality: smooth concrete lines the façade in a horizontal manner, the rough concrete lining vertically. The [[steel frame|steel-framed]] windows are situated onto the bays protruding from the façade, and are reminiscent of overhanging towers in medieval castle architecture. The bay windows seem to elevate upwards, opening up the two lowermost levels into voids enclosed with steel-framed glazing, making these elements seem lighter than they really are. To stretch further one's imagination, it is as if these elements are elevators that transport the "scholar[s] anxious to escape the noise and turmoil of the vulgar press [into]… a dream palace enshrining in its holy mysteries the power of the word."<ref>Acland, James. "Protest 2: a brain factory." Canadian Architect. v.19, n.8. Don Mill, Ont.: Hugh C. Maclean Publications, Ltd. 1974: 36-39</ref>

[[File:Robartslibrary3.jpg|thumb|right|250px|A mid-level mezzanine connects the library building with the [[Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library]]. ]]
[[File:Robarts Library Lobby 2022.jpg|thumb|250px|Robarts Library Lobby ]]
Comprising fourteen storeys, plus two underground floors, the [[Brutalist architecture|brutalist]] and [[Futurism|futurist]] structure features raised podia and a suspended fourth floor.<ref name="mcClelland_2007">{{cite book |title=Concrete Toronto: A Guidebook to Concrete Architecture from the Fifties to the Seventies |last=McClelland |first=Michael |author2=Stewart, Graeme |author3=E.R.A. Architects  |year=2007 |publisher=Coach House Books |isbn=978-1-55245-193-9 |pages=34, 164, 173}}</ref> A [[mezzanine]] level physically connects Robarts Library to the [[Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library]] building at its southeastern side, and to the Claude T. Bissell Building, housing the [[University of Toronto Faculty of Information|Faculty of Information]], at its northeastern side. The concrete [[waffle slab]] floor plates are adorned with triangular-patterned [[tessellation]]. A hexagonal central circulation atrium is enclosed at the core of the building and through the middle of the mezzanine level.<ref name="mcClelland_2007"/> The gross area of the building is over {{convert|1036000|sqft|m2}}.<ref name="leighton_2000">{{cite book |title=Planning Academic and Research Library Buildings |last=Leighton |first=Philip D. |author2=Weber, David C.  |year=2000 |publisher=ALA Editions |isbn=0-8389-0747-4 |pages=20, 138}}</ref>

[[Image:Robarts corner 750px.jpg|thumb|250px|Robarts Library as viewed from its northwestern corner. The connection to the Claude Bissell Building is visible at left]]
In 2008, the university announced that Robarts Library would be receiving a significant upgrade, the first phase of which was completed in the spring of 2011. During these years a major transformation gradually took place at Robarts, beginning with the renovation of the apexes on each stack floor in 2008 (finished in 2010), the Map & Data Library on the 5th floor in 2009, the Media Commons on the 3rd floor in 2010, and the second floor porticos in 2011. The renovations were intended to create a welcoming environment that would both provide informal study space and function to let people know about the services and resources available throughout the building. Signage throughout the building was redesigned and refreshed to improve navigation and usability of the library and its resources, and new touch screens are already improving communication with students, providing information such as the number of available workstations on each floor at any given time. Robarts outdoor signage can be scanned with the smartphone app Layar for augmented reality links.

=== <span class="anchor" id="Robarts Common"></span>Robarts Common ===

The next phase of the renewal was the addition of a five-storey pavilion which would become a new face of Robarts, opening up the west side of the building to the street, bringing a flood of natural light to the lower floors and making the overall environment more inviting, accessible and productive for students.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Robarts Expansion to Begin This Spring |first=Sharon |last=Aschaiek |date=Winter 2016 |journal=University of Toronto Magazine |url=http://magazine.utoronto.ca/life-on-campus/robarts-expansion-to-begin-this-spring-sharon-aschaiek/ |access-date=2016-01-15}}</ref> The new pavilion opened as '''Robarts Common''' in September 2022, adding 1,200 new work and study spaces to Robarts, and bringing the library's total number of study spaces to over 6,000.<ref>{{Cite press release |url=https://www.utoronto.ca/news/u-t-celebrates-official-opening-robarts-common |title=U of T celebrates official opening of Robarts Common |date=2022-09-13 |access-date=2023-11-06 |publisher=University of Toronto}}</ref> The renovations were designed by Diamond and Schmitt Architects Incorporated.