This book is a thorough overview of the work of Balthus (b. 1908), the elusive painter whose fascinating images of young women were first greatly admired by the Surrealists, and have remained so today. This controversial artist is exceedingly reclusive, and until the last decade rarely gave interviews or allowed himself to be photographed. As a result, both his life and his work have been the subject of much intrigue and speculation.

Now, his eldest son, Stanislas Klossowski de Rola, offers privileged insights into the art and thought of this remarkable man.

Here is the widest selection of Balthus's work ever published: landscapes, street scenes, still lifes, and women, from the 1930s to the present, including all his most important paintings of the last ten years. A unique collection of rare photographs presents the young Balthus in his studio, as well as in recent images taken by his friend Henri Cartier-Bresson and other photographers.

The art of Balthus - private, hermetic, evocative, mysterious - lends itself to both deep readings and simple appreciation. The artist himself has always resisted the former, remaining convinced that the paintings should speak for themselves. But, bowing to the demands of a career that has encompassed major retrospective exhibitions at the Tate Gallery, London, and The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, he has assisted his son in the creation of this book.