Hirmer Publishers is the name used by Hirmer Verlag, a
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany, the country of the Germans and German things
**Germania (Roman era)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...
art book publishing house based in
Munich
Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...
, for its operations in the English-speaking world.
Publishing history
The publishing house was founded in 1948 by
Max Hirmer and his wife Aenne. Since 1952 it has been called Hirmer Verlag and began publishing books in the 1950s. After Max Hirmer retirement, his son Albert Hirmer took over the management of the publishing house. Since 2011 the publishing house belongs to the newspaper publisher Dirk Ippen.
Thomas Zuhr (1960–2024)
['']Börsenblatt für den Deutschen Buchhandel
The "" (English: Weekly magazine for the German book trade), until 2002 "" (English: Trade exchange newspaper for the German book trade), is the association organ of the Börsenverein des Deutschen Buchhandels. The publication, founded in 1834 ...
'', 45/2009, S. 39. was managing director from 2009 to 2024. The management has been with Kerstin Ludolph since 2024.
Hirmer Publishers with its headquarters in Munich (Germany) ranks among the most prestigious publishers of art books.
Publishing program
The subjects of Hirmer books span a wide range of areas from
painting
Painting is a Visual arts, visual art, which is characterized by the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called "matrix" or "Support (art), support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with ...
,
photography
Photography is the visual arts, art, application, and practice of creating images by recording light, either electronically by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. It is empl ...
,
architecture
Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and construction, constructi ...
,
sculpture
Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...
,
drawing
Drawing is a Visual arts, visual art that uses an instrument to mark paper or another two-dimensional surface, or a digital representation of such. Traditionally, the instruments used to make a drawing include pencils, crayons, and ink pens, some ...
, to fashion, and the history of culture and include series of academic publications as well as extensive catalogues raisonnés. In recent years, Hirmer Publishers has increasingly turned its focus to contemporary art, without neglecting its traditional roots in fields such as
archaeology
Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...
and the
decorative arts
]
The decorative arts are arts or crafts whose aim is the design and manufacture of objects that are both beautiful and functional. This includes most of the objects for the interiors of buildings, as well as interior design, but typically excl ...
.
Exhibition catalogues are also part of the publisher's program as well as authors' books, which are often prepared over a period of years and then developed and produced in-house. In addition, is the regular appearance of the Hirmer collector's editions: original works, which are numbered, signed, and published in strictly limited editions.
International art
The majority of the publications are in German, but more than 200 English-language titles are available. The publishing house cooperates with
Thames & Hudson
Thames & Hudson (sometimes T&H for brevity) is a publisher of illustrated books in all visually creative categories: art, architecture, design, photography, fashion, film, and the performing arts. It also publishes books on archaeology, history, ...
and the
University of Chicago Press
The University of Chicago Press is the university press of the University of Chicago, a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois. It is the largest and one of the oldest university presses in the United States. It pu ...
.
Awards
In 2018, Hirmer Publishers was awarded with the Goldene Letter, the highest award of the international competition for the most beautiful books from all over the world, for ''Heimat, Handwerk und die Utopie des Alltäglichen''. Schönste Bücher aus aller Welt.
Börsenblatt: Hirmer-Buch gewinnt Goldene Letter
/ref>
References
External links
Official Website
of Hirmer Verlag (English version)
{{Authority control
Book publishing companies of Germany
Mass media in Munich
German companies established in 1948