Recovering Mies' Overlooked Library: The Building and Renovation of the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library in Washington, DC

The Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library (MLKML) in Washington, DC stands as arguably one of the most historically significant public buildings designed by internationally renowned architect Ludwig Mies van der Rowe in the United States. Although Mies’ only library and his only building in Washington, DC, the MLKML has nevertheless been previously minimized or overlooked.

The thesis presents archival research on the choice of Mies for the Library project to reveal that he was commissioned in 1965 to design the Library through the efforts of William Walton, then chair of the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts, as a continuation of a broader plan set in motion by the Kennedy Administration for modernist architects to design public buildings for the federal and city government in Washington, DC. The thesis also contrasts the city’s initial lack of decision-making authority regarding the original construction of the MLKML with the city’s active role in the subsequent preservation and renovation of the MLKML, completed by Mecanoo in 2020. The thesis concludes that the Library’s renovation returns Mies’ steel and glass structure and design to the public consciousness, using the flexibility integral to the original design to update the Library and emphasize its open spaces. The MLKML’s renovation thus reclaims a significant monument as well as Mies’ footprint in Washington, DC.