Bienes Museum of the Modern Book

Location Map & Hours
The Museum is located on the sixth floor of the Main Library in downtown Fort Lauderdale. View the location map and hours.

Rooms
The Museum has a lobby reception area, several exhibition cases, a 25-seat Conference Room and a 60-seat Ceremonial Room that is available for lectures and programs. Customers may view rare and special materials in the Reading Room.

Features
The 8,300 square-foot facility was designed by Fort Lauderdale architect Donald Singer. The Museum features a stunning combination of glass, granite, ceramic tiles, and a dramatic, curved wood ceiling above slatted-wood walls. The inviting stained-glass entryway, entitled Passages, was created by Shelley Jurs as a commissioned work through the Broward County Public Art and Design Program. Elements of the glass design were inspired by Celtic knot work images from The Book of Kells, a ninth century Irish work represented in facsimile at the Museum.

History
The Museum opened to the public on December 4, 1996, with James A. Findlay as the Bienes Museum Librarian. 

Sponsors
The Museum was made possible through the generosity of Fort Lauderdale philanthropists Dianne and Michael Bienes. Support was also provided by a grant from the Broward Public Library Foundation with additional funding from the Florida Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs and the Florida Arts Council.

​The Museum houses a special collection totaling more than 15,000 items, including rare books, artifacts, manuscripts, and reference materials. The majority of the holdings are secured in a humidity and temperature-controlled storage area. The librarian on duty in the Reading Room provides reference services and retrieves materials for customers.

To view the collection
Submit an ​online request form to make an appointment or request scans of Special Collections and archival materials.​​

​Location/Hours
Appointments ar​​e held in the Bienes Museum of the Modern Book Reading Room​ on the 6th floor of Main Library located at 100 S. Andrews Avenue, Fort Lauderadale, FL, 33301. View the location map and hours.

​A variety of exhibitions and programs related to the collections have been offered at the Bienes Museum. Over the years, the Museum has featured lectures on topics such as book collecting and book histories and mounted exhibitions ranging in scope from Works Progress Administration publications to book-jacket art. New digital technologies have enabled the Bienes Museum to create online exhibitions that celebrate the printed book as an art form; these online exhibitions have garnered attention from customers and researchers from around the world. 

Michael Shaara Collection​​​
The Michael Shaara Collection contains manuscripts, letters, photographs, notebooks, books, and ephemera. (Donated by Mrs. Helen Shaara and son Jeff Shaara in 1998).

Charles Willeford Collection
The Charles Willeford Collection contains manuscripts, letters, photographs, notebooks, books, videos, audio tapes and ephemera. (Donated by his widow, Betsy Willeford, in 1998 and 1999).​

The Bienes Museum collections began through the generous gifts and contributions of individuals and organizations. With the support of a community that recognizes the cultural importance and value of the written word, the size of the collections and scope of the services at the Museum will increase.​

• Contact Bienes Museum's Special Collections staff at 954-357-7363, to learn how to contribute to the Museum's future.​
• Donated collections and prized volumes enhance the variety, quality and significance of the materials available at the Museum.
• Cash gifts guarantee that important works and collections will be acquired when they become available. Often these gifts can be used as matching funds for grants to promote the collections and related exhibitions and programs.