Library of the Academy of Architecture

Accademia di architettura, Mendrisio, Palazzo Turconi, Foto Alberto Canepa
Accademia di architettura, Mendrisio, Palazzo Turconi, Foto Enrico Cano
Accademia di architettura, Mendrisio, Palazzo Turconi, Foto Enrico Cano
Accademia di architettura, Mendrisio, Palazzo Turconi, Foto Enrico Cano
Accademia di architettura, Mendrisio, Palazzo Turconi, Foto Enrico Cano

The Library of the Academy of Architecture was established in 1996 in conjunction with the foundation of the Università della Svizzera italiana. Over the years it has grown into one of the most important libraries for the history of art and architecture in Switzerland. The extensive and systematic acquisition of new publications guarantees its constant bibliographic updating, while important bequests of book collections, author libraries and the acquisition of special collections document the history of the debate in the relevant fields. As a result of this organisation, the Library fulfils a threefold mission: it is an educational library, serving the Faculty of Architecture; a scientific library, for the  research institutes and advanced studies; and an archival library, which preserves and documents architectural and artistic culture, in particular that of Ticino, Switzerland and southern Europe.
The library’s new premises in Palazzo Turconi cover 1800 m2 with 110 individual study stations and 4 study rooms for group work. The general collection, author libraries and a substantial collection of periodicals dealing with architecture, art, design, photography, restoration, urban and spatial planning and landscape design can be found on the free access shelves. Specially air-conditioned rooms preserve the ancient volumes, the graphic and photographic collections.
The Library also offers access to the services of Swisscovery, the new research platform that brings together the holdings of 475 Swiss academic libraries and makes available the whole range of scientific documents held in Switzerland: over 30 million books and periodicals, and more than 3 billion articles in electronic format. The intent is to create a laboratory in the service of reflection, research and design, with an offering of documents, analogical and digital, which will favour creative cognitive paths, new discoveries reached by analogies, correspondences and unexpected and sometimes even fortuitous combinations.

 

Responsables
 
Collaborators    
Scientific responsible
Christoph Frank
Library Responsible
Angela Windholz
Coordinator
Francesca Ambrosio-Resciniti
 

Cataloguing
Debora De Carli
Michele Mogliazzi
Fiorenza Moretti
Loan, interlibrary loan
Nadir Marcon
Periodical
Daniela Costarelli
Swisscovery coordnation
Sabina Walder
Special Collections
Elisabetta Zonca
Acquisitions
Monica Soldati
Open Access & Web services
N.N.

   

Room 1 - Authors Collection

  • André Corboz Fund
  • Gino e Gianna Macconi Fund
  • Christoph Frank Fund
  • Stanislaus von Moos Fund

Room 2 - Authors Collection

  • Virgilio Vercelloni Fund
  • Jacques Gubler Fund
  • Enzo Frateili Fund
  • Fritz Stuber Fund
  • Rara Moderni Collection

Room 3 - General Collection

  • Generalities 
  • Philosophy
  • Religion
  • Social Sciences
  • Natural Sciences
  • Applied Sciences
  • Art
  • Urban planning
  • Architecture Landscape design
  • L  Large Books
  • XL Extra Large Books
  • DVDs

Room 4 - General Collection

  • Plastic Arts
  • Applied Arts
  • Graphic Arts
  • Photography
  • Music
  • Performing Arts
  • Linguistic and Literature
  • Geography and History
  • Architecture           
  • L  Large Book
  • XL  Extra Large Books

Room 5 - Special Collections

  • L’Archivolto Fund
  • Luca Beltrami Fund
  • André Corboz antico Fund
  • Juan José and Pedro Fortini Fund
  • Georg Germann Fund
  • Augusto Guidini Fund
  • Guidini-Bottinelli Fund
  • G.G. Macconi antico Fund
  • Americo Marazzi Fund
  • Stanislaus von Moos Fund
  • Luigi Nessi Fund
  • Augusto Rima Fund
  • Emanuel Stickelberger Fund
  • C. C. della Torre Rezzonico Fund
  • Virgilio Vercelloni antico Fund
  • Rara Antichi Collection
  • Periodici Antichi Colection

 

Room 6 - Photographic collections

  • André Corboz Fund Fund
  • Augusto Guidini Fund
  • Augusto Rima Fund
  • IN.CO. and Silvano Zorzi Fund
  • Luigi Zaretti
  • Library Collection