The Hunt Library Gallery, located on the first floor of Hunt Library – in the Emma Sharpe Alcove – is the area first seen by visitors when entering the library.
Featuring display cases of multiple sizes and a moveable wall, the 17 feet long by 23 feet wide space is intended to be flexible – allowing for creative and experimental displays to engage students, alumni, and community members in new and different ways. The gallery hosts at least two exhibitions per year, one of which will be centered on material from the University Archives’ collections, providing a centrally located area to celebrate CMU’s history and the collections held by the Libraries and the Archives. The space embodies the spirit of Carnegie Mellon – celebrating its heritage, while embracing the creative and experimental culture.
A 2019 donation from Michael Smith, a 1968 graduate of the College of Engineering, and Lonna Smith, a 1969 graduate of the College of Fine Arts funded the buildout of the space and establishment of an endowment to fund exhibitions that celebrate collections held by the University Archives. The first exhibition in the space was “Looking Back to Move Forward / A Re:collection of Robotics at Carnegie Mellon.”