A broader context

Anne-Marie Schwirtlich is the Director-General of the National Library of Australia. Between 2003 and 2011 she was CEO and State Librarian of the State Library of Victoria.

I think domes are extraordinary spaces. Architecturally they seem improbable and are therefore so clever; as they soar they take us with them, and their graceful curves feel so inclusive. The State Library’s dome is all of these things with the bonus of allowing us to read, reflect and enjoy collection items at a desk or in the exhibition galleries.

When it opened, the dome was generally acknowledged to be a splendid addition to the Library with modern equipment and ample space for readers and the growing collection.

For decades the dome was a landmark visible from many angles and many parts of the city.

It was a source of pride – the largest dome in the Southern Hemisphere – and much used.

There was widespread dismay when the dome started to leak. In the absence of sufficient funding to repair it, the Library had to patch the roof continually until eventually, in 1959, the roof was clad in copper.

When the dome reopened in 2003 following extensive renovations, including restoring the roof to its original state, Victorians were uniformly delighted, awed and inspired. To see families visit the dome so that grandparents and parents could return to a space they remembered and loved, and introduce their children to it, was a privilege.

For the eight years I worked at the Library, no matter how fraught the day, if I walked into the dome it was a potent reminder that libraries pursue their missions over the long term – that they should be ambitious and persevere. Over a century ago, the Library’s trustees and staff were valiant in arguing the case for the dome and we are all very fortunate that they did. And so the dome influenced my work by putting a great deal of the day-to-day into a broader context. It helped me to focus on balancing what was important for the moment with what was important for the future.

Every library aims to inspire its readers, its community, its funders and supporters and the State Library of Victoria is no different. It was always a pleasure to take existing and potential supporters of the Library to the dome, to see the reading room and the Galleries, because in an instant they could see that the Library had a long tradition of mattering to the people of Victoria and that it is an organisation to be passionate about.