This handsomely illustrated reference introduces the reader to the masters of Western art, their major works, and their lives and times. Included are artists representing important periods of art history, from the pre-Renaissance and Renaissance through the Baroque, Rococo, Romantic, Impressionist, and Modern periods. 9 volumes are arranged in chronological order by artist and grouped by period and style: Pre-Renaissance of Northern Europe; High Renaissance; Old Masters; French Classicists; French Rococo; English Landscape and Portraiture; Impressionism; Modernism; American Artists; Additional index volume. There is a consistent format for all articles: The Artist's Life; In the Background (origins of a particular work); A Year in the Life (history of the artist's world); Gallery (reproductions of the artist's finest work); The Artist at Work (goals and unique style). Featured Western artists have universal appeal. They include the Limbourg Brothers, van Eyck, van der Weyden, Bosch, Leonardo, Michelangelo, Raphael, Titian, Rubens, Hals, Rembrandt, Vermeer, Ingres, Poussin, Claude, David, Watteau, Fragonard, Boucher, Chardin, Turner, Gainsborough, Constable, Reynolds, Manet, Degas, Monet, Renoir, Matisse, Picasso, Modigliani, Boccioni, Cassatt, Sargent, Whistler, and Hopper. Individual volumes feature: a gallery guide for locating artworks; brief entries on the artists' contemporaries; further readings; and volume index. Volume 10 contains: comprehensive index; index of artists; index of paintings; glossary; and illustrated glossary of artistic techniques. Whether exploring an individual artist or a particular school of art, these fascinating articles provide valuable insights into Western art history and the creativity of great artists.