The Media Library
The HKB Media Library combines the holdings of four divisions: Design and Fine Arts, Conservation and Restoration, Research and the Y Institute.
HKB Media Library
The Media Library is a centre of learning and exchange for HKB students, lecturers and staff. It is also open to the public in order to inform and inspire interested specialists and laypeople alike. The holdings of the HKB Media Library are indexed in the NEBIS catalogue. The vast majority can be borrowed.
Opening hours
Monday – Friday, 9am – 5pm
Contact
Bern University of the Arts
Media Library
Fellerstrasse 11
CH-3027 Bern
T +41 31 848 38 31
Specialisations
Design + Fine arts
Art and art education
- Artists’ monographs and exhibition catalogues
- Theory and philosophy of art
- Art history, art epochs, art movements
- Sculpture
- Painting
- Drawing
- Illustration
- Graffiti
- Comics
- Performing arts
-
Media art
Architecture
- Architects’ monographs
- History of architecture
- Architectural theory
- Urban development
- Landscape and garden architecture
- Interior design
Book design, typeface design, typography
Design
- Designers’ monographs
- History of design
- Design theory
- Industrial design
- Graphic design, visual communication and commercial art
Handicrafts and decorative art
- Woodworking
- Textile design and fashion
- Paper design
Graphic art
- History of graphic art
- Print methods
- Graphic printing
Photography, film, animation
- Photographs’ monographs
- History and theory of photography
- Documentary photography
- Architectural photography
- Artistic photography
- Cinematography
- History of film
- Film technology
- Film criticism
- Film theory
- Animation
Other
- Philosophy
- Sociology
- Pedagogy
- Psychology
- Theatre
- Film library (feature films, documentaries, animated films)
Conservation + Restoration
- Physics, chemistry and biology
- Paints, binding agents, solvents, varnish
- Painting and sculpture
- Graphics and written material
- Photography, film and video
- Architecture, interior design and furniture
- Modern materials and media
- Art history
- Art epochs and movements
- Iconography
- Sources
Holdings
The collection of the HKB Media Library contains around 40,000 media: 4,000 films, more than 200 journals, more than 30,000 exhibition catalogues, illustrated books, monographs, reference works, almanacs and teaching materials on the subject areas of the library. The HKB Media Library is open to the public. Users must be registered to borrow media from the library. The registration can be completed for free on site.
Special holdings
Rarities
The HKB Media Library owns around 100 valuable, rare publications.
Their classmark is RARA. They are not available for loan. Rarities can only be used for reference on site or borrowed for short-term use in internal classes.
You can use the NEBIS catalogue to search our rarities.
Theses and dissertations (diploma, bachelor, master)
The Media Library collects the diploma theses of HKB students.
Projects in the field of Conservation and Restoration are integrated into the holdings of the HKB Media Library. The NEBIS catalogue lists them under their title and author’s name.
Projects completed in the Division of Design and Fine Arts are collected in the Media Library. They can only be viewed on site.
Research
The HKB Media Library is open to the public. All individuals with a valid IDS library ID can borrow media. You can get a free library ID at the Media Library. Alternatively, your BFH card can be activated as a library ID. We generally recommend being logged into the university network or using a VPN to search for media, as you will be unable to access licensed media otherwise.
Literature and media search
New Library Catlogue form December 2020
New Library Catalogue from December 2020
The BFH libraries, which are currently split across two separate library networks (NEBIS and IDS Basel Bern), will be merged on a new platform together with over 500 other libraries. The GoLive of the new, nationwide library system is scheduled for December 2020.
The project to build the Swiss Library Service Platform (SLSP), which has been running for several years, will not merely unite the BFH libraries on one platform. At the same time, over 500 university libraries and other scientific libraries across the nation will be migrated to the new SLSP platform. The GoLive is scheduled for 7 December 2020. The changeover will lead to the following adjustments for users.
New catalogue and new search interface
The majority of BFH libraries today are part of the NEBIS network – their users will find that the new SLSP search interface looks familiar. For users of the HKB Music Library and the Sports Media Centre at Magglingen the changes will be greater. The libraries will provide all users with appropriate information and support.
Login with edu-ID
The changeover requires all library uses to re-register.
- No more separate login
- Users log in with their Switch edu-ID, which they either already have or which they set up before registration.
- Registration will be possible before the changeover in December.
- Existing library cards remain valid. The barcodes can be entered in the new system.
Data in the Netherlands
The data of library uses will be stored on a server in the Netherland. Therefore, the authorisation for the transfer of the necessary personal data will be required at the time of registration.
SLSP courier
Up to now only the libraries in the NEBIS network were able to offer users the possibility to order media from other libraries and collect them from their own. The HKB Music Library and the Sports Media Centre at Magglingen are pleased to offer this service as well from December 2020.
For external users this service will be subject to a fee whereas for members of BFH the costs will be covered by the BFH libraries
Replacement of the old library system
The replacement of the old library system will take place in stages. Borrowing media will probably be possible until a few days before the GoLive in December. Other processes such as recording and modifying catalogue data will be stopped by late October, and new media cannot be incorporated after that. The NEBIS lending network will probably discontinue its service by mid-November. From then on, orders can only be placed for collection on site or by postal dispatch (if offered). Reserving media on loan will no longer be possible.
The BFH libraries will inform you in due course about the further procedure and about any steps you will be required to take.
Library catalogues
NEBIS
The HKB Media Library is part of IDS, the Information Association of German-speaking Switzerland, and NEBIS, the Network of Libraries and Information Centers in Switzerland, which comprises around 140 libraries of universities, universities of applied sciences and research institutions as well as special libraries from all linguistic regions of Switzerland.
The NEBIS catalogue lists more than 10.5 million titles (books, series, journals and other media) including all media held by the HKB Media Library. Most documents can be ordered online.
NEBIS
The HKB Media Library is part of IDS, the Information Association of German-speaking Switzerland, and NEBIS, the Network of Libraries and Information Centres in Switzerland, which comprises around 140 libraries of universities, universities of applied sciences and research institutions as well as special libraries from all linguistic regions of Switzerland.
The NEBIS catalogue lists more than 10.5 million titles (books, series, journals and other media) including all media held by the HKB Media Library. Most documents can be ordered online.
swissbib Basel Bern
swissbib Basel Bern is the union catalogue of the Swiss National Library, university libraries and universities of applied sciences libraries in Basel and Bern.
swissbib
swissbib is a catalogue of the holdings of all Swiss university libraries, the Swiss National Library, many cantonal libraries and other institutions. It offers easy, instant and comprehensive access to academic publications in Switzerland.
eJournals + Databases
swissuniversities
Access links to electronic sources of information, including specialist databases, journals and books, for students and staff of the Swiss universities of applied sciences. The universities of applied sciences maintain joint subscriptions to these sources. Free access from the university network. The platform also lists a number of important sources of information that are accessible for free.
Elektronische Zeitschriftenbibliothek (EZB)
The EZB (Elektronische Zeitschriftenbibliothek) is dedicated to facilitating the efficient use of academic journals online. It offers instant, structured, uniform access to full-text academic journals. Members of Bern University of Applied Sciences can use a VPN (Virtual Private Network) to access the databases externally.
e-periodica
e-periodica is the ETH library’s platform for digitised Swiss journals. Its oldest holdings date back to the early eighteenth century. The stock is constantly updated to include the latest issues. All journals held by the platform are accessible for free. Depending on the agreement with the respective publisher, there may be an embargo on recent issues.
JSTOR
JSTOR is a non-profit organisation based in New York. It operates a fee-based online archive containing older issues of select specialist journals.
Any publications (papers, journals, books and primary sources) that have been licensed can be viewed, printed and downloaded externally via a VPN (virtual private network).
Schweizerisches Zeitschriftenportal (SZP)
The SZP (Schweizerisches Zeitschriftenportal) is a service offered by the Swiss National Library and the regional associations and libraries. The portal supports meta searches for journal articles in Switzerland’s main library catalogues.
Image databases, specialist databases
Prometheus
Prometheus is a digital image archive that combines 94 institutional, museum and research databases in a single interface. Members of HKB can access more than 1.7 million high-quality, digitised images in the arts, culture and history on campus or via a VPN.
Artstor
Artstor is a non-profit organisation that builds and distributes the Digital Library, an online resource containing more than 1.9 million images in the arts, architecture, humanities and social sciences.
e-norm (Schweizerische Normen-Vereinigung SNV)
Approximately 37,000 standards from the SN (INB/SWISSMEM), ISO and Electrosuisse collections.
To access the database, please contact the HKB Media Library, mediothek@hkb.bfh.ch.
EAI Electronic Arts Intermix
This collection of video and media art contains works of art from the beginnings in the 1960s until today.
Online databases and portals on Nazi-confiscated art
Lost Art Internet Database Deutschland
‘Lost Art’ is the official German database for the documentation of cultural objects seized during the Nazi dictatorship. It contains cultural objects that were displaced or confiscated as a result of organised looting efforts by the Nazis, especially from Jewish owners.
Anlaufstelle Raubkunst, Federal Office of Culture
A governmental online portal about artworks plundered by the NS regime. Contains general information as well as information about provenance research.
Conditions of use
Borrowing
Loan periods
The standard loan periods are 28 days for books, 14 days for other media (e.g. DVDs) and 3 days for circulating journals.
Unless the borrowed media are requested by another user, the initial loan period is automatically renewed twice.
Library account
In your library account, you can view your loans and reservations, manually renew your loans and update your address details.
You need your ID number and password to log into your library account.
Please check your loan status regularly in your user account. Reminders are sent as an additional service. We do not accept any liability for non-receipt (e.g. due to spam filters). Please see the NEBIS FAQ for details.
Fees
| Library fees 2019 |
|---|
| Loans from the NEBIS Association |
| Free |
| User ID |
|
Free |
|
Courier service between members of the NEBIS Association (e.g. ZHdK, HGK, ETH) |
| Free |
| Postage |
|---|
| Postal delivery (domestic shipment) |
| CHF 12 (per document) |
| Postal delivery (international shipment) |
|
CHF 44 (per document) |
| Photocopying fees |
|---|
|
Students |
|
PDF by email: up to 20 pages |
|
CHF 7, plus CHF 0.20 for each additional page |
|
PDF by email: up to 20 pages |
|
CHF 10, plus CHF 0.20 for each additional page |
|
Non-members |
|
PDF by email: up to 20 pages |
|
CHF 12, plus CHF 0.50 for each additional page |
|
PDF by email: up to 20 pages |
|
CHF 15, plus CHF 0.50 for each additional page |
| Overdue fees |
|---|
|
Reminder/recall |
|
free |
|
1st overdue notice (after 10 working days) |
|
CHF 10 (per document) |
|
2nd overdue notice (after another 10 working days) |
|
another CHF 10 (per document) |
|
3rd overdue notice (after another 10 working days – your account will be blocked) |
| another CHF 15 (per document) |
