1980 / Comic beginnings

Young Benedikt Taschen: 18 years old + 25 square meters = Taschen Comics shop in Cologne, Germany. After years of collecting, Benedikt opens his own shop, selling a huge selection of new and rare collectors’ comics. The very first Taschen Comics publication is Sally Forth.

1985 / Bingo with Ingo

Taschen’s edition of Dalí sports 1000 typos, according to editor Ingo F. Walther, who boldly claims he could do much better. So Benedikt hires him to edit the very first TASCHEN original publication and the first book in the Basic Art series, Picasso.

1990 / Old house, new house, Bauhaus​

Taschen relocates into a 19th-century mansion in Cologne, hangs up a Kippenberger sculpture, celebrates the publication of Karl Lagerfeld’s photographs, and publishes more super successful titles: Bauhaus and Architecture in the 20th Century.

1995 / Do you speak leg?

Elmer knows Batters and gets his first book out at the age of 76. 
As Benedikt tells Vanity Fair: “You see, it’s nice for these older guys to finally have their work taken seriously. Then they die. But they die happy.” Wolfgang Tillmans is not that type of guy. He gets published at the age of 27.

2000 / Big success

World record for the most expensive book published in the 20th century: Helmut Newton’s SUMO copy #1, autographed by over 80 of its featured celebrities, goes for USD 304,000 at a charity auction in Berlin in April 2000, giving Helmut Newton, Benedikt Taschen, and auctioneer Simon de Pury cause to celebrate. All proceeds go to the Mentor Foundation to help children in need. In September our Taschen Store Paris, located in the heart of St. Germain, opens its doors to the public.

2005 / Wrapping up 25 wonderful years in business

Dozens of perennial Taschen favorites are reborn as special 25th anniversary edition titles for very special anniversary prices. Festivities abound at the Hotel Parco dei Principi in Sorrento, Italy, where over 200 Taschenites from across the globe come together for three days of festivities in a breathtaking setting at La Canzone del Mare, Capri.

2010 / THE BIG THREE-O

For our 30th anniversary booth at this year’s Frankfurt Book Fair, we are honored to have none other than Shigeru Ban as designer. We publish the long awaited and massively successful popular edition of Helmut Newton’s SUMO.

2015 / Che Meraviglia

Taschen celebrates its 35th birthday in Italian style with the opening of its 12th store in the historic center of Milan. True to Taschen international scope and its commitment to classical and contemporary art, the store combines traditional craftsmanship with cutting-edge design including Jonas Wood’s terrazzo flooring, a new furniture concept by Marc Newson, and 1950s Italian design.