Federico Barocci (1528/1532-1612) is one of the most important and original italian artists of the late Renaissance. His remarkable sfumato, his increcible ability to capture natural appearance, the graceful emotionalism of his figures, his delicious coloring are the very premonitions of the Baroque period. The present book pays homage to this exceptional artist whose career in Rome was interrupted by illness - it is said that rivals attempted to poison him. Living in the isolation of his native Urbino, this retiring and timid personality contributed, thanks to his profoundly spiritual inspirations, to the aesthetic renewal of the Catholic Church at the time of the Counter-Reformation. (Text engl.)