Continuously in print for more than 20 years, Abrams' "Masters of Art" series has always been known for its exceptional quality and value. Now these classic volumes devoted to the lives and works of the world's greatest painters have been newly redesigned and released in paperback for the first time. Comprehensive introductory texts written by distinguished art historians provide incisive and informative portraits of the artists, and their analysis is accompanied by sketches, related works by other artists, and black-and-white photographs. Each book features 40 full-page, full-color plates with commentaries on the facing page. Jan Vermeer's mysterious and poetic paintings, with their luminous power and their simple, studied, everyday scenes, continue to fascinate us. This volume reproduces all of Vermeer's known works, including Saint Praxedis, which had only recently been validated by scholars as an important early work of the artist at the time of the book's original publication.