LONDON.- Prestigious art-book publisher Lund Humphries, which in 2014 celebrated 75 years of publishing, is being re-launched as an independent publishing imprint following its split from the Ashgate Publishing Group in July 2015.

Lund Humphries was acquired by Nigel Farrow, former Chairman of the Ashgate Publishing Group, in November 1999. In July 2015, Nigel Farrow sold his Ashgate and Gower imprints to Informa Plc, owners of Taylor & Francis, but Lund Humphries remains under Nigel Farrow’s continued ownership as an independent imprint.

Nigel Farrow said: ‘Lund Humphries has been an essential part of the British art world since the days of Henry Moore and Ben Nicholson. More recently it has expanded its coverage internationally to include more areas of the visual arts. There is a future in well-illustrated and authoritatively written books and the future is exciting.’

Managing Director Lucy Myers, who in 2016 will mark 25 years with Lund Humphries, said: ‘We intend to retain our specialist focus but to expand our publishing in logical ways from our core in Modern British art. That includes developing a more international profile to the list, identifying opportunities for partnerships, particularly with museums, and expanding the professional side of our publishing.’

New initiatives already underway include an international Contemporary Painters series, edited by US art critic Barry Schwabsky supported by an international advisory board, which is being commissioned for launch in 2017.

Commissioning Editor Val Rose has joined the Lund Humphries team with a specific remit to develop Lund Humphries’ professional publishing on the arts, including a new professionally oriented list in Architecture and related areas of Design.

Eleanor Hooker, formerly Marketing Manager at Pickering & Chatto Publishers, has been recruited to manage Lund Humphries’ worldwide sales, and Independent Publishers Group (through its Art Stock Books division) will distribute Lund Humphries’ printed books in North America, and e-books worldwide, from 1 January 2016.

The first visible expression of Lund Humphries’ independent identity is its new website, www.lundhumphries.com, developed in partnership with Bibliocloud and Shopify and launched in November 2015. Lund Humphries is offering free postage on all UK orders, and a special 20% launch discount until 31 December 2015.