The art collection and archive represent the cultural memory of the University of Applied Arts Vienna and make a key contribution to its identity. The origins of the collection date back to 1900. Since 2004 the art collection and archive have seen themselves as a research institution that records and presents the University’s past and present by means of exhibitions, publications, the extension of the data base and joint projects. The collection currently comprises about 60,000 items from all areas of the fine arts and applied arts, design and architecture as well as archive material of former students and teachers.

The start page of the website, created by checkpointmedia, shows the five sections of the art collection and archive: the Art and Design Collection, the Oskar Kokoschka Centre, the Archive, the Victor Papanek Foundation and the Costume and Fashion Collection. A series of alternating images provides glimpses of each section. Each section is underlaid with descriptive text.

The website’s design by Anouk Rehorek is deliberately understated so the eye focuses on the pictures in the gallery. To ensure the pictures are protected from improper use they have been watermarked.

Besides the extensive galleries of objects, the website also provides information on the many publications on the collection’s main areas of interest and research activities.