Published by Thames & Hudson in 2005, this monograph by Stanislas Klossowski de Rola is the definitive intimate look at the career of the enigmatic painter Balthus. As the artist’s eldest son, de Rola provides personal context and insights into his father’s famously reclusive lifestyle and provocative “I-photograph” style. The book presents a thorough overview of Balthus’s work from the 1930s to the end of his life, featuring over 100 high-quality reproductions, including the controversial “The Guitar Lesson” and his final painting, “The Waiting.” It also contains rare archival photographs of Balthus in his studio, including portraits by his friend Henri Cartier-Bresson, documenting the life of a modern master who blended Old Master techniques with a surreal, often eroticized, contemporary vision.
