 After finishing the Crafts School in Ljubljana, from 1951 until 1955, Bernik attended the Academy of Fine Arts in Ljubljana, where he was a pupil of Maksim Sedej.From 1956 to 1958, he continued his studies with the professors of graphic design Božidar Jakac and Riko Debenjak, and on a number of study travels (Italy, France...).From 1958 to 1969, he worked as a freelance artist, and in 1970 started teaching as a professor of drawing and painting at the Academy of Fine Arts in Ljubljana.