"Once described as "the most beautiful painter's drawings in existence," Georges Seurat's mysterious and radiant works on paper played a crucial role in his career. Though Seurat is most often remembered as the inventor of pointillism and for paintings like Un Dimanche a la Grande Jatte, his incomparable drawings are among his - and modernism's - greatest achievements. Working primarily with conte crayon on paper, Seurat explored the Parisian metropolis and its environs, abstracted figures, spaces, and structures, and dramatized the relationship between light and shadow, creating a distinct body of work that is a touchstone for art the twentieth century and today." "Accompanying the first exhibition in almost twenty-five years to focus exclusively on Seurat's drawings, this volume surveys the artist's entire oeuvre - from his academic training and the emergence of his unique methods to the studies made for his monumental canvases. Distinguished writers present important new research on Seurat's artistic strategies, materials, and themes."--Jacket.