Naila, Philomene, Six, Sabine, 1984

About the Acquisition

Benedikt Taschen, who lives in Cologne, Berlin and Los Angeles, is an important publisher and collector of art. In 1980, at the young age of nineteen, he opened a shop for comic-book literature in his home town of Cologne, which soon afterwards led to the founding of the internationally famous Taschen Verlag. His innovative idea of publishing illustrated books on art in high print runs enabled a broad section of the public to acquire the publications inexpensively. He also collected artists of his own generation in particular, including Albert Oehlen and Martin Kippenberger, and promoted their work. The Städel is indebted to Benedikt Taschen and his outstanding collecting activities and generous commitment for extensive gifts of contemporary art to the museum.