WHY LA LOINGTAINE ?
La Loingtaine was born from a confluence of cultural encounters ‑ particularly between Asia and Europe ‑ and from the enduring influence of Masako Saulière’s lifelong work with UNESCO. What began in 2005 as an intimate concert programme has gradually evolved into a broader cultural initiative, shaped by a growing network of ideas, collaborations, and shared sensibilities.
Set near the forest of Fontainebleau, some seventy kilometres south-east of Paris, La Loingtaine takes its name from an eighteenth-century farmhouse and its surrounding landscape. Bordering the river Loing, the property offers a setting that invites study and reflection, exchange, and creation.
From the outset, the Saulière family envisioned La Loingtaine as a place where young musicians could work and perform in a more generous and less pressurised environment. Over time, this has developed into a sustained concert programme supported by a loyal and growing community. The creation of a publishing activity extends this spirit, giving more lasting form to the ideas and collaborations that emerge there.
At the heart of these activities lies a shared vision of what it means “to be” inspired by Learning to Be by Edgar Faure (UNESCO 1972), which places human development through culture, knowledge, and experience, at the centre of society. It is within this horizon that La Loingtaine’s activities take shape, in dialogue with the ideals of international cooperation that informed the creation of the United Nations.
Across cultures, the relationship between aesthetic, cultural, and scientific knowledge has long been recognized. Yet modern development has often privileged a predominantly Western scientific perspective, sometimes at the expense of other ways of understanding the world.
La Loingtaine’s books seek, in a modest but deliberate way, to contribute to a more plural view of knowledge bringing forward voices, traditions, and forms of thought that are not always widely represented.
Through both its publications and its musical activities, La Loingtaine explores how art, cultural knowledge, and science may be brought into dialogue ‑ seeking, through this encounter, to illuminate the values and forms of understanding through which we might more attentively inhabit the world today.
La Loingtaine takes its name from a property situated on the edge of the Fontainebleau Forest, extending down to the River Loing. This setting is reflected in our logo: a Japanese character (kanji) meaning “the house where the river runs by”.
La Loingtaine tire son nom d’une propriété située en lisière de la forêt de Fontainebleau, s’étendant jusqu’à la rivière du Loing. Ce paysage se reflète dans notre logo : un caractère japonais (kanji) signifiant « la maison au bord de l’eau ».
WHO WE ARE
La Loingtaine Publishing House is a small, independent initiative dedicated to exploring the relationships between art, culture, and knowledge across traditions. We specialise in non-fiction that safeguards ideas at risk of being lost, particularly in the fields of culture, art, architecture, heritage, and the philosophy of science. Each book is developed collaboratively with its author, combining intellectual depth with meticulous design and production.
CORE TEAM
MASAKO MORI
SAULIÈRE
Founder & Patron ‑ Exec. Director
International cultural initiatives, music patronage, and cross-cultural exchange
Tel. +33 (0)1 75 15 89 45 · +33 (0)6 22 85 11 86
Email: msauliere@laloingtaine-publishing.com
After a long professional journey with UNESCO, Masako Mori Saulière has drawn on her extensive international experience and network to shape the vision and development of La Loingtaine.
In 2005, she initiated a high-level chamber music programme, conceived as a space where young musicians could rehearse over extended periods and develop their practice in a supportive and demanding environment. Since then, more than 200 concerts have been organised, alongside a programme of training academies and masterclasses that immerse young musicians, especially from Japan, in the European cultural and musical context, helping them understand how Western classical music is interpreted and performed. Over time, the programme has fostered a diverse and engaged audience from across disciplines, reflecting the interdisciplinary spirit of La Loingtaine.
As the scope of activities expanded, Masako also began organising small conferences dedicated to the dissemination of knowledge across art, music, and science, encouraging dialogue and highlighting the potential for exchange between these fields.
In 2018, she founded La Loingtaine Publishing, extending this vision into the realm of publishing and creating a platform for the development and transmission of ideas beyond the immediate context of the place.
PERNILLE
ASKERUD
Publisher ‑ Director, Research and editorial management
Scholarly publishing, cultural policy, and cross-cultural research
Tel. +45 60 75 43 35
Email: paskerud@laloingtaine-publishing.com
Pernille Askerud has worked in very many countries, especially in Asia. As a freelance consultant to governments and international organisations, notably UNESCO, she has lived and worked internationally for much of her career and has developed a deep understanding of cultural contexts and the diversity of knowledge systems.
Her work has focused on organizational capacity-building in the fields of culture and education, with particular emphasis on policy development and project design. It has often involved the formulation of upstream initiatives, including the development of innovative and cross-sectoral approaches.
Pernille brings extensive experience as a researcher and writer. She has overseen the production of several hundred publications within UNESCO and has worked for many years on the development of professional publishing and cultural industries in emerging economies.
At La Loingtaine Publishing, she is responsible for the development of the publishing programme and is closely involved in the editorial and intellectual shaping of its books, contributing through research, writing, and conceptual framing.
She has been affiliated as a senior research fellow with universities in Copenhagen and Hong Kong and has edited and published numerous peer-reviewed academic articles.
EDITORIAL ADVISORS
La Loingtaine is supported by an international group of advisors with expertise in scholarly publishing, cultural heritage, and education.
Tønnes Bekker Nielsen
Scholarly publishing and ancient historical studies
A leading specialist in scholarly publishing, Tønnes Bekker Nielsen was the Founding Director of Aarhus University Press from 1985 to 2000, shaping its early identity and international reach. Later, he served as President of the International Association of Scholarly Publishers (1991 to 1998), which positioned him at the centre of global discussions on academic publishing standards and collaboration.
Tønnes Bekker Nielsen is an established author in ancient and classical history. His work focuses in particular on ancient geography, Anatolia, and Greek and Roman epigraphy. He later joined the University of Southern Denmark and continues his research on the ancient city of Neoclaudiopolis (modern Vezirköprü, Turkey). He has also held leading editorial roles in journals such as Classica et Medievalia and Orbis Terrarum.
Richard A. Engelhardt
Cultural heritage conservation and international safeguarding frameworks
Educated at Yale and Harvard, Richard Engelhardt is a leading figure in cultural heritage research and conservation in Asia. Over four decades, he has held senior roles with UNESCO, including establishing the UNESCO Office in Cambodia and initiating the international safeguarding campaign for Angkor.
He later served as UNESCO Regional Advisor for Culture in Asia and the Pacific for more than a decade and continues to advise on heritage conservation internationally.
He has played a significant role in the development and implementation of international frameworks for the protection of cultural heritage, including work related to World Heritage, and is the recipient of numerous international awards, including a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Global Heritage Fund. He has collaborated with Pernille Askerud on publications related to cultural heritage conventions.
Étienne Clément
Heritage law, policy, and international cultural conventions
Étienne Clément is an international lawyer specializing in cultural heritage. Over three decades with UNESCO, he served in senior positions at Headquarters and in field offices in Cambodia, Thailand, and the Pacific. As Director of the UNESCO Office for the Pacific States in Apia, Sāmoa, he led regional initiatives linking culture, development, and heritage protection. He has contributed to the development of international frameworks for cultural heritage protection, including work related to World Heritage and underwater cultural heritage, and played a role in safeguarding efforts in Cambodia. Clément has authored publications on heritage law and policy, collaborated with Pernille Askerud on several works, and continues to advise as a consultant on cultural heritage issues.
Don Long
Educational publishing and indigenous knowledge in the Pacific
Don Long is a publisher and editor based in Wellington, New Zealand. Formerly Publisher at Lift Education E Tū Limited, he has dedicated much of his career to educational publishing in the Pacific. Through his work with Learning Media and Lift Education, he has contributed to the production of materials in Pacific languages and supported the development of indigenous publishing practices across the region. He has extensive knowledge of Pacific languages ‑ being fluent in several ‑ and has worked closely on cultural publications in indigenous languages, strengthening both the visibility and sustainability of local publishing traditions.
Rupert Maclean AO
Education policy, skills development, and international research in TVET
An internationally recognised educator and researcher, Rupert Maclean has worked extensively on educational innovation and skills development (TVET) across Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. He has held senior positions with UNESCO, including Director of the UNESCO-UNEVOC International Centre in Bonn, and was Chief of the Asia-Pacific Centre of Educational Innovation for Development in Bangkok. He has authored and edited numerous major reference works in education, including leading handbook series published by Springer.
Desmond Hui
Cultural policy, heritage management, and creative industries
Desmond Hui is an architect, historian, and art curator specializing in cultural policy and the creative industries. Educated at the University of Cambridge, he combines expertise in art, design, and heritage with extensive experience in academic and international cultural development. At The Hang Seng University of Hong Kong, he is Professor and Founding Head of the Department of Art and Design.
He has held numerous public appointments, including Chairman of the Antiquities Advisory Board, Chairman of the Art Subcommittee of the Museum Advisory Committee, and Museum Expert Advisor to the Hong Kong Government. Since 2015, he has served as Expert Advisor to UNESCO, contributing to the 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions and the Culture/2030 Indicators initiative.
A leading scholar in cultural development and strategic sector planning studies, Hui’s work bridges heritage conservation and creative growth in Asia. He has collaborated with Pernille Askerud on curriculum development for heritage management programmes and on advancing innovative approaches to cultural statistics and policy frameworks.
Barbara Adler
Design education, visual culture and communication across cultures
Barbara Adler is a lecturer in design and visual communication whose background spans film, photography, and educational development. Born to a Hungarian father and an American mother, she trained as a cinematographer at the Danish Film School and is now based in Denmark. Her career bridges practice and theory across media, with long-standing engagement in design pedagogy. She has taught at institutions including the prestigious School of Design at the Royal Danish Academy in Copenhagen and contributed to research on the evolving identity of design as a discipline ‑ particularly the shift from practice-based to theoretically grounded approaches.
Her work explores the relationship between craft, representation, and meaning in contemporary contexts. Adler has collaborated with Pernille Askerud on publications addressing design education and the semantic dimensions of craft, with particular attention to the place of traditional practices in a modern world.
