Is there any residential amenity more dignified and sophisticated than the home library? Whether aged and pleasantly dusty or modern and bright, there’s no denying the romance of a space in one’s home specifically devoted to knowledge, curiosity, and calm. Below, we’ve chosen 14 of our favorite home libraries from decades of AD home tours—from a rustic yet refined Donald Judd–influenced space to an English-inspired Mario Buatta library in Manhattan.
A lineage-centered library
Featured in AD’s December 1980 issue, the Majorca home of Don Bartolomé March is a celebration of the art collector’s lineage. The structure was built by Bartolomé March’s father in the year of his son’s birth. His vast collection includes works by Picasso, Magritte, and Dalí, but the piece that dominates in the library is a portrait of his mother.
Moody moment
Decorated with the help of designer Howard Slatkin and published in the April 1995 issue of AD, the library in Marilyn Evin’s New York apartment is a dark antidote to the light living room it abuts. The space’s tortoiseshell walls were created with 14 coats of paint and seven coats of lacquer by artist Erik Filban.