Georges de La Tour (1593-1652) was one of the greatest French painters of the seventeenth century, but his art was rapidly forgotten after his death and has been rediscovered only in our own century. Since the major retrospective exhibition held in Paris in 1972, previously unknown paintings have continued to come to light, such as Saint John the Baptist in the Wilderness, a moving late work discovered in 1994.

The exhibition celebrated by this beautiful book presents this and other new additions to La Tour's oeuvre and locates his art in the wider European context of his time.

This book offers a complete overview of the life and art of La Tour. Drawing on new historical research, it discusses his career, possible travels, the context in which he worked, and such issues as the contemporary replication and dissemination of his art. It examines the relationship of La Tour's art to the Counter Reformation and to the work of other artists in Nancy, Paris, Rome, and Utrecht.

The book also includes the results of recent scientific research into La Tour's materials and working methods.