Edward is much more than his world famous "scream." A gifted painter and printmaker, Munch not only was Norway's greatest artist, but also played a vital role in the development of German expressionism. His work often included the symbolic portrayal of such themes as misery, sickness, and death. Paintings reproduced here, such as "The Sick Child," "Vampire," and "Ashes," reveal Munch's preoccupation with the darker aspects of life.

Rubens’s work radiates energy, expressing a heady sense of life’s pleasures. The reproductions in this book reveal his brilliant colours and inexhaustible imagination in all their splendour. The accompanying text traces how his paintings of the female figure lead to artists like Auguste Renoir.

For Monet, the act of creation was always a painful struggle. He attached more importance than any of his contemporaries to one of the essential aspects of Impressionism: transmitting light and emotion to the spectator. The illustrations in this book show the fruits of this struggle, beautifully reproducing Monet's work.