In the 1940s, Alexander Liberman "feared that many traces of a heroic epoch might vanish." France had seen a flowering of painting and sculpture in the first half of this century that rivaled that of the Renaissance, and after World War II Liberman set out to visit those artists who still lived there and to seek what remained of those who had gone. Liberman was fascinated by the relationship between the artists' surroundings and their work, and he began documenting the studios he visited. He also made a series of extraordinary portraits of the artists themselves. One of Alexander Liberman's great achievements in a life long in achievement is to have given us these photographs of a world in which some of the most influential works of our time were created. The photographs, along with his conversations with the artists and his erudite discussions of their surroundings, illuminate the art in a completely original way. -- From publisher's description.