A SHORT HISTORY
  The first contracts for the imprint, which was launched in 1960, were signed as early as 1955 and a joint operation agreement signed with Hachette in 1956. The imprint was directed by André Malraux and honorary director of the Musées de France, Georges Salles. In fact, the inventor of the imaginary museum, soon to be Minister for Cultural Affairs, was the real instigator. He set out the concept, structure, and editorial form of the imprint, although the volumes weren’t published in chronological order.
  Malraux was particularly interested in the image – its selection, development and processing. His writings on art, which were mostly published between 1947 and 1954, already gave considerable space to cleverly inserted iconographic detail. “L’Univers des formes” is Malraux’s “museum without walls”. Photoengraving enables us to see all kinds of large and small artworks without ever having to move In addition graphic processing of the illustrations facilitates comparisons otherwise impossible for the inexperienced eye. Rather than the director of an imprint, Malraux was the director of a museum, a paper museum. Roger Parry, the official photographer of the NRF, devised the graphic design of the first books. One of Malraux’s fellow travellers Albert Beuret was editorial supervisor for many years. Tight administration was imperative because as early as 1960, the imprint was edited simultaneously in Italy, Spain, Britain, and the United States, then Japan from 1962. While enabling major innovation, such an international platform complicated editorial and commercial decisions. On several occasions, there was heated debate over such editorial decisions as the publication of so-called ethnographical volumes (Afrique noire by Michel Leiris).
  Following Georges Salles’ death in 1966, head curator of the Musées de France and scientific director of the imprint AndrèParrot became co-director. Then in 1977 following Malraux’s death, Paul-Marie Duval, professor at the Collège de France and Hubert Landais, director of the Musées de France, joined Parrot. In 1983, the committee appointed Albert Beuret and Pierre Quoniam. An independent company, La Photothèque, was responsible for the iconography of the books from 1964 to 1978.