Vassily Kandinsky pioneered abstract painting in the early 20th century. He believed that geometric forms, lines, and colors could express the inner life of the artist—a theory quite evident in his own explosive paintings, which were often inspired by music. Today, Kandinsky’s canvases sell for tens of millions at auction and belong in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the Tate, among other prestigious institutions. In 1911, Kandinsky played a central role in organizing Der Blaue Reiter, a group of avant-garde artists in Munich that included Franz Marc and Paul Klee. From 1922 to 1933, he taught at the Bauhaus, the historic Weimar institution that brought together artists including Josef Albers, Lazlo Maholy-Nagy, and Piet Mondrian.

Founded in 1926 by Christian Zervos at 14, rue du Dragon in the heart of Saint-Germain-des-Prés, Cahiers d’Art encompasses a publishing house, a gallery, and a revue. The Cahiers d’Art Revue was entirely unique when it was introduced, and it still is: a revue of contemporary art defined by its combination of striking typography and layout, abundant photography, and juxtaposition of ancient and modern art. Between the 1920s and the mid-1970s, Cahiers d’Art published ninety-seven issues of the Revue and more than fifty books on fine art and architecture, as well as the thirty-three volume catalogue raisonné of Pablo Picasso. After its acquisition and relaunch in 2012 by Staffan Ahrenberg, an editorial board comprised of Sam Keller, Hans Ulrich Obrist, Isabela Mora, and Staffan Ahrenberg was created. Cahiers d’Art has since published several new Revues and art books devoted to Ellsworth Kelly, Rosemarie Trockel, Hiroshi Sugimoto, Alexander Calder, Pablo Picasso, Thomas Schütte, Gabriel Orozco, Joan Miró, Lucas Arruda, Ai Weiwei, Arthur Jafa, Frank Gehry, Christo, and others. From the 1920s till today, Cahiers d’Art has maintained a gallery, exhibiting the artists it publishes. Cahiers d’Art continues to fulfill its mission to be the cultural bridge between the avant-garde of Picasso, Duchamp, and Le Corbusier, and the leading artists and architects of our time.