The TASCHEN History
TASCHEN at a Glance
- Full legal name:
- TASCHEN GmbH
- Brand name:
- TASCHEN
- Founded:
- February 9, 1980, Cologne, Germany
- Founder:
- Benedikt Taschen
- Managing Directors:
- Benedikt Taschen, Marlene Taschen
- Headquarters:
- Hohenzollernring 53, 50672 Cologne, Germany
- Legal form:
- GmbH, registered at Amtsgericht Cologne, HRB 13988
- Industry:
- Independent art-book publishing — illustrated books on art, architecture, design, fashion, film, lifestyle, photography, pop culture, and travel
- Stores:
- 11 branded stores worldwide
- Online shop:
- taschen.com — worldwide shipping, available in English, German, French, Spanish, and Italian
- Tagline:
- Books for Optimists Since 1980
What TASCHEN Is — and Isn't
TASCHEN is an independent, family-run publishing house — not to be confused with the common German noun Tasche (bag), or with any unrelated company or person using a similar name. Founded in 1980, TASCHEN grew from a single comic-book shop in Cologne into the world's leading publisher of large-format, illustrated art books, sold through its own e-commerce platform, branded stores, and an international distribution network.
A History Told Through Its Editions
TASCHEN's identity is best understood through the series it has built over more than four decades:
- Basic Art Series (from 1985):
- Launched with a monograph on Salvador Dalí, this series of compact, affordable monographs has grown to more than 120 titles, published in up to 30 languages. It established TASCHEN's founding mission: making well-produced art books accessible to a broad, international audience.
- SUMO / Collector's Editions (from 1999):
- The publication of Helmut Newton's SUMO introduced TASCHEN's monumental Collector's Edition format — among the largest commercially published books of its era — cementing the publisher's reputation for boundary-pushing book design.
- Art Editions / Limited Editions:
- Signed, numbered editions produced in close collaboration with the featured artist or photographer, often accompanied by an original or limited-edition print.
- 45th Edition Series (2025):
- Marking the publisher's 45th anniversary, this collection distils TASCHEN's most celebrated titles into a more compact, accessible format while maintaining the same standards of craftsmanship and material quality.