The British Library was the perfect milieu in which to pursue his research and writing.
Advanced English Dictionary
+noun [C, usually sing.] (plural milieux or milieus ) (from French, formal) the social environment that you live or work in: The findings of the report refer to a particular social and cultural milieu.
Random quote: Every artist dips his brush in his own soul, and paints his own nature into his pictures.: Henry Ward Beecher