Phaidon Press

Phaidon Press (short form Phaidon ) is one of the leading publishers in the field of fine arts, architecture, photography and design.

As a " Phaidon " the company in 1923 by Béla Horovitz, Ludwig Goldscheider and Fritz Ungar was founded in Vienna. The aim of the publisher - whose name is inspired by Plato's dialogue Phaedo - to offer quality books at affordable prices, which could be achieved through co-operation with British and American publishers and high circulation figures was. The first books published were, however, no art books, but literary, philosophical and historical works. The publication of large-format illustrated books, was known for the Phaidon later, began in 1936 with books about Van Gogh, Botticelli and the French Impressionists.

The annexation of Austria by Nazi German Reich forced the Jewish owner in 1938 to emigrate to Britain, first to Oxford later to London. The publisher is working together there in the first time with the British publisher Allen & Unwin, before he established himself locally as " Phaidon Press " and finally remains even after the war in Britain.

1950 was published by the History of Art of the renowned art historian Ernst Gombrich, in 30 different languages ​​, the one of the best selling art books of all time, with a circulation of over 7 million copies. In the 70s and 80s, the publisher changed hands several times, the owners until it was taken over in 1990 by Richard Schlagman, the Phaidon heads today. From 1994 to 2006, the graphic designer Alan Fletcher Art Director at Phaidon and coined the style of the publications of the publisher. Since 1995, the Phaedo is also known for his series Contemporary Artists, will be published in the monographs of contemporary and emerging artists.

Today, the Phaedo, whose headquarters is still in London, maintains branches in New York, Paris, Berlin and Tokyo. He publishes in English, French, German, Italian, Spanish and Japanese.