Es Devlin Unveils Monumental Library at London’s Design Museum

A monumental rotating library featuring more than 2,000 books takes centre stage in Es Devlin: Other Worlds, a major retrospective of the British artist and designer that opened at London's Design Museum on 2 October 2026. Titled An Infinite Library, the newly commissioned kinetic sculpture forms the exhibition's finale, offering visitors an intimate insight into the books, ideas and intellectual influences that have shaped Devlin's creative practice.

Eight metres wide, the triangular bookshelf rotates above a circular mirror, creating a striking visual encounter between literature, architecture and movement. Arranged by colour, the books include well-thumbed volumes taken directly from Devlin's studio shelves, among them James Gleick's Chaos, David Abram's The Spell of the Sensuous, Toni Morrison's Beloved and Margaret Atwood's Oryx and Crake. The installation is illuminated by projections and accompanied by a soundscape featuring Devlin reading selected passages aloud.

Drawing on the idea of a library as a map of human thought, the work references Italian author Umberto Eco's description of a library as a compass of the mind. Each book represents a point of departure into another world, reflecting Devlin's interest in how stories and ideas can expand our understanding of experiences beyond our own.

An Infinite Library is the fourth in a series of sculptural libraries created by Devlin, following Library of Light at the Pinacoteca di Brera in Milan, Library of Us on Faena Beach in Miami and Library of the Four Winds at Castle Howard in Yorkshire. Commissioned specifically for the Design Museum, it is the first of these kinetic library installations to be presented inside a museum.

Many of the books have been supplied by Penguin Random House UK in support of the National Year of Reading. Following the exhibition's conclusion, they will be donated to local schools and charities.

Three Decades of Creative Exploration

Running until 4 April 2027, Es Devlin: Other Worlds examines the development of an expansive practice that crosses the boundaries between visual art, theatre, music, poetry and design. Conceived in close collaboration with the artist, the exhibition brings together installations, films, archival material and models, alongside the largest solo presentation of Devlin's archive to date.

Visitors begin their journey in a recreation of Devlin's South London studio, complete with bookshelves, objects, maquettes, drawings, paints and tools. A projection-mapped film narrated by the artist introduces the space, establishing the studio as the starting point for the ideas and processes explored throughout the exhibition.

Another major highlight is Come Home Again, Mirrored, a reimagining of Devlin's celebrated installation first presented outside Tate Modern in London in September 2022. The original work featured a cross-section of the dome of St Paul's Cathedral, illuminated with cut-out drawings of endangered moths, birds, beetles, wildflowers, fish and fungi. Commissioned by Cartier and developed with guidance from the London Wildlife Trust, the installation drew attention to biodiversity and the natural world. For the Design Museum, the work returns in a new arrangement incorporating a mirrored ceiling, transforming the surrounding space and offering a fresh perspective on the original.

The exhibition also includes A 30-Year Desk, an installation comprising concentric circular desks filled with hundreds of archival objects. Concept drawings, photographs, personal possessions and other ephemera reveal the evolution of Devlin's projects, many of which have never previously been displayed publicly. More than 30 intricate models and maquette-scale recreations offer further insight into the development of major sculptures, stage designs and choral installations.

Among the projects represented are her set design for The Lehman Trilogy in 2018, the Forest of Us installation presented in Miami from 2021, the London 2012 Olympic Games Closing Ceremony and the 2022 Super Bowl halftime show, alongside kinetic stage designs created for international music tours.

A two-part presentation titled A 50-Year Archive traces Devlin's enduring relationship with drawing through sketches, paintings, collages, diaries and prints produced during her school, university and art college years, as well as throughout her subsequent career. Together, these materials illuminate the role of drawing as the foundation of her multidisciplinary practice.

An Immersive Portrait of an Artist

Reflecting on the exhibition, Devlin said:

“I am moving my studio and practically my entire 30-year archive into the Design Museum for this show. It’s an immense privilege to have this opportunity to share my working process and practice with visitors and to create a new large scale library installation within a museum for the first time.”

Tim Marlow, Director and Chief Executive of the Design Museum, described Devlin's work as an embodiment of interdisciplinary design thinking, highlighting its connections with art, activism, poetry, sculpture, music and architecture. He also emphasised the artist's commitment to collective experience and audience participation.

Curated by Johanna Agerman Ross and Danielle Thom, with Margherita Dosi Delfini, the exhibition is supported by Bloomberg Philanthropies. A new edition of A Concise Atlas of Es Devlin, published by Thames & Hudson, accompanies the show, while a free digital guide is available through Bloomberg Connects.

Es Devlin: Other Worlds is on view at the Design Museum in London until 4 April 2027.