MuHKA is a large, independent Flemish organisation recognized by the Flemish Community, situated in Antwerp. MuHKA is a museum focussing on visual culture and contemporary visual art, film and media art in particular.
Its core business is to collect, to conservate and to manage its own collection; to present, study and document discursive exhibition and documentation projects and experiments. MuHKA wants to be a pioneer on both a regional and a European level.

© Bram Goots

 

MuHKA library

The image library is the living heart of the museum, it is no mere storage space, but rather takes an active part in the formation of ideas. The image library also gives an image of the image-cultural operation which the MuHKA has adopted. Visual culture is a complex topic, a social connection in permanent evolution. Visual culture is made visible n the context of the image library by the coordinated 'coexistence' of structured bodies of information, each retaining their own specificity, yet also engaged in an ongoing dialogue.

The library of the MuHKA is concentrated on the 20th century with an emphasis of the artistic production from 1970 until today. The library comprises some 18.000 books, 1248 magazine copies of 18 currently published magazines. SineBase comprises about 3.300 books and catalogues, 350 copies of magazines and currently has 50 subscriptions (these titles hail from 42 different countries), collections of newspaper cuttings and an extensive collection of photographs. SineBase is at present also engaged in the compilation of a collection of film classics on DVD.

The 'co-existence' of the library of the MuHKA and of SineBase is justified by the actual specificity of contemporary art on the one hand – on the borderline between pictorial and 'material' art and moving images like film, video and interactive installations on the one hand, and by a permanent calling into question of the relations of looking, experiencing (together) and physical experience which are stimulated by film, video and new image mediums on the other hand which made it into the central concern of contemporary art.

The relations between visual mediums and contemporary art, originating from research at the library will lie at the basis of further expeditions in the form of exhibitions , presentations, lectures and conferences. It is evident that the information which is conserved at the 'coexistence-nexus' of SineBase and MuHKA creates the opportunity to create a context and background information, allows for an analysis in greater depth of subjects or experiences which occur during other activities at MuHKA.

As stated above, the image library of the MuHKA is not a merely passive administrative centre, but the living heart of the museum, where the visitor finds the liberty to explore venues but where s/he can also count on the assistance and cooperation of the staff of the library and its creative, stimulating nature. Questions will certainly be replied to, but also raised in order to stimulate the curiosity and to keep research alive and kicking.
The image library of the MuHKA id for everybody: for the specialist and the professional, yet also for the amateur. It is the place of the museum with the lowest of thresholds, it is the place where the acquaintance with the contents of the museum is made, an acquaintance which will hopefully lead to more contacts.