Gestalten

Gestalten

Native name	Die Gestalten Verlag
Company type	Private
Industry	Publishing
Founded	1995
Headquarters	Berlin , Germany
Key people	Robert Klanten (CEO)
Website	gestalten.com

Gestalten is an independent publishing house based in Berlin, Germany.[1]

History

Gestalten was established by three friends: Robert Klanten, Markus Hollmann-Loges and Andreas Peyerl, who all moved to Berlin in the early 1990s.[2] They rapidly came into contact with the Berlin techno and rave scene, initially designing flyers, posters and record covers for music labels and events such as the Love Parade. In 1994, they conceived a book about techno-art, documenting the visual aspects of technoculture.[3]

In order to gauge the market interest, they started to produce order cards, to be distributed through techno magazines. They received over 1000 orders, through which they were able to obtain a loan, which facilitated the production and release of their first book, The Localizer 1.0. This led to the foundation of Die Gestalten publishing house in 1995. The name was later changed to gestalten.[2] The word means to shape, or to create in German.

Gestalten has been led solely by Robert Klanten since the departure of his co-founders Markus Hollmann-Loges and Andreas Peyerl in 2008. The company remains independent, with investor MairDumont and Klanten holding 50% of the shares each.[4]

Publishing

Gestalten's focus shifted away from music towards books showcasing graphic design in 1998.[2] The following years continued this trend, with the majority of books covering design and art themes as well as publishing books about architecture, food culture, travel, motorbikes and bicycles. Since its conception, the publishing house has focused on the international market, publishing in English for a global audience.[5]

Collaborations

Gestalten has partnered with niche organizations such as outdoor brand Parks Project,[6] architecture website ArchDaily,[7] and lifestyle magazine Kinfolk.[8] The company has also collaborated with global brands including Marvel[9] and Monocle,[10] as well as leading creatives such as Stuart Humphryes[11] and Dieter Rams.[12]

References

1. Fairs, Marcus (2 September 2016). "German design publisher Gestalten declares itself insolvent". dezeen.com. Retrieved 15 August 2020.
2. JULIA LÖHR,"Wenn Bücher, dann Hardcover". faz.net. 19 September 2014. Retrieved 15 August 2020.
3. von Börsenblatt,"Gestalten meldet Insolvenz an" (in German). Börsenblatt. 12 August 2016. Retrieved 15 August 2020.
4. von Börsenblatt,"MairDumont übernimmt 50 Prozent der Anteile". Börsenblatt. 27 April 2017. Retrieved 15 August 2020.
5. "Smallest book in the world". news.bbc.co.uk. 13 April 2002. Retrieved 15 August 2020.
6. "Parks Project Celebrates America's Iconic National Parks In New Book". Field Mag. November 22, 2022. Retrieved 23 November 2022.
7. "The ArchDaily Guide to Good Architecture". ArchDaily. November 9, 2022. Retrieved 23 November 2022.
8. "De Cotiis Residence". Kinfolk. Retrieved 23 November 2022.
9. "Explore the History of Marvel's Visual Language with 'Marvel By Design'". Marvel. June 29, 2021. Retrieved 23 November 2022.
10. "Copenhagen: The Monocle Travel Guide". Monocle. November 24, 2016. Retrieved 23 November 2022.
11. "History enhanced! Early photographs reborn – in pictures". The Guardian. October 4, 2023. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
12. Chin, Andrea (March 10, 2019). "'less and more' illustrates the functional design of dieter rams". designboom. Retrieved 23 November 2022.

External links

• Official website