Publishing house established in 1908 by influential dealer Paul Cassirer, who became highly successful for promoting French Impressionism, Post-Impressionism, and German artists of the Berlin Secession and Expressionist circles. From 1908 to 1921 operated his own printshop, Pan-Presse, which revitalized luxurious hand-printed graphics and illustrated books in Germany. Prolific publisher of prints, portfolios, and illustrated books by artists in his stable, including Ernst Barlach, Max Beckmann, Lovis Corinth, Oskar Kokoschka, and Wilhelm Lehmbruck. In 1910 Cassirer launched the periodical Pan (1910–12), embracing Expressionist art and literature. Enlisted in military service in 1914 and served as an ambulance driver in Belgium. Together with Austrian writer and critic Alfred Gold, published the patriotic periodical Kriegszeit (Wartime) from August 1914 to March 1916. Each issue included lithographs by various artists interpreting the war. As attitudes toward the war shifted, replaced Kriegszeit with the more moderate Der Bildermann (The picture man), published from April to December 1916. In 1919 Cassirer took over the periodical Die weissen Blätter (The white pages), an important vehicle for Expressionist writers. In 1922 was forced to sell his printing press to the Felsing printshop due to financial difficulties. Committed suicide in 1926; publishing business, run by Cassirer's business partners, continued until 1933.

Selected Bibliography

Caspers, Eva. Paul Cassirer und die Pan-Presse: Ein Beitrag zur deutschen Buchillustration und Graphik im 20. Jahrhundert. Frankfurt: Buchhändler-Vereinigung, 1989.

Feilchenfeldt, Rahel, and Markus Brandis, eds. Paul Cassirer Verlag Berlin 1898–1933: Eine kommentierte Bibliographie. Munich: KG Saur, 2005.

Feilchenfeldt, Rahel, and Thomas Raff, eds. Ein Fest der Künste: Paul Cassirer. Der Kunsthändler als Verleger. Munich: C.H. Beck, 2006.