A Hole In The Carpet

As consumer replaces student, an exhibition studies the demise of Auckland’s specialist arts libraries, and mourns the blissful stretches of time once spent in them.

- Anna Miles

In August 2018, before the oak trees in Whitaker Place burst into leafy lushness, photographer Sam Hartnettspent a number of days on campus at the University of Auckland photographing the Fine Arts, Architecture & Planning and Music & Dance Libraries. These spaces are on the verge of disappearance, and will soon be consolidated by the university into the main library.

While Hartnetthas previously documented the School of Architecture & Planning Library and the Music School by Manning Mitchell (an NZIA Enduring Architecture award winner) his carefully pruned group of 12 photographs from the exhibition Ex Libris comprises, with almost no exception, close-up views of interiors. His selection is modest, shady, textural and eschews the heroic architectural image.

The three libraries are architecturally diverse. They range from the modern to the postmodern, and each enjoys a unique campus setting. Elevated above Grafton Gully, the Fine Arts Library feels like a treehouse. The windows of the Music Library curve around a courtyard complete with parasols and trellis. The organisation of each space reflects the particular needs of students from different disciplines – however, in Hartnett’s photographs, it’s almost impossible to differentiate one library from another.