The Spanish artist Diego Velazquez (1599-1660) was one of the most important painters of the Golden Age. Taking as its starting point a group of masterly children's portraits from the high-profile collection of the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna, this opulent volume shows a representative cross-section of Velazquez's oeuvre, which also includes kitchen still lives, religious subjects, mythological themes and history paintings. As the court painter of King Philip IV of Spain, Diego Velazquez advanced to become one of the outstanding portraitists of his time. Through their modern and psychologically profound representation of the subject, his likenesses remain an experience for the viewer to this day. Above all the Spanish master's highly individual view of man and his world make his paintings stand out among contemporary works and render him unique. With contributions by renowned specialists the volume shows Velazquez's development as a painter and traces his uniqueness through comparisons with works by famous contemporaries.