The genius and virtuosity of Rubens painterly skill is apparent. But how exactly did he work? How did he actually create his paintings? This beautiful book takes the reader through the entire passage from sketch to sale. It looks over the masters shoulder and discovers how he first made pentimenti, oil sketches and model studies before applying his paint to what were at times enormous panels sometimes in many successive transparent layers, at other times directly with colourful brushstrokes. Rubens was a craftsman, and was familiar with the work of his contemporaries and the latest techniques, on which he himself made variations or adaptations. He employed assistants to carry out parts of a work, negotiated prices, and took a keen interest in the transportation of his work. The words of Rubens himself or his contemporaries feature regularly in this publication so that the genesis of a work can be followed at first hand.