Like its companions in the western Esplanade, the Graphic Arts was designed by the Boston architectural concern, Peabody & Stearns. It was similar in appearance to Mines Building, which it faced across the fountains of the western Esplanade.

The Graphic Arts Building was linked to the Horticulture Building by the connecting North conservatory which was used as to display wines, spices, mineral water, liquors, etc. The Graphic Arts building, also called the "Gallery" to differentiate it from its companion building, the Graphic Arts Workshop, housed exhibits of printing, paper, inks, illustrations, engraving, lithographing, etching, bookbinding, and machinery used for these. The nearby Graphic Arts Workshop, across the canal, was used for printing and publishing of the Exposition newspaper and daily exposition programs during the Exposition.

Among the exhibitors were Crane Brothers (paper), International Paper, Leslie's Publishing, Doubleday & Page (publishers), Funk & Wagnalls (publishers), Niagara Paper Co (paper), J.N. Matthews Co (Buffalo Courier and Matthews & Northrup Printing), The U.S. Playing Card Co., Western Bank Note Co.

In the Workshop were machinery by Niagara Envelope Co, Electric City Engraving Co (photo-engraving), Dow Composing Machine Co, Eagle Ink Co, Oswego Machine Works (cutting machines).

The Horticulture/Mines/Graphic Arts buildings were the western half of the first series of buildings a visitor encountered after traversing the Triumphal Bridge. Director of Color C. Y. Turner's general plan was to have the color of the buildings reflect their position in the evolutionary journey of civilization. These first buildings, according to Turner, were to be in colors "crude and strong". (The other end of the grounds, culminating in the Electric Tower, represented the refinements and achievements of humankind; their colors were brighter and/or more vivid.)

Observers described the roofs of these three buildings as "medium dark terra cotta" and the exterior walls as "orange" or "a warm buff color" with "details of brilliant blue, green, rose, and yellow."