During July and August 1938, as Europe prepared for war, Roland Penrose and Lee Miller took a journey through the Balkans. Penrose was a painter and a writer; Miller was a studio assistant to Man Ray, a muse to several artists, and a brilliant photographer. As they traveled, Penrose snapped pictures and took notes on a world that both artists were just discovering and that would soon be transformed forever.

Shortly after their return, Penrose created a handmade book for Miller, containing the photographs he made and a poetic commentary on what he and Miller experienced during their travels. It was later published as a limited edition book, which Penrose then personalized with a series of fanciful drawings. Altogether, this affecting little book occupies an important place in the history of surrealist literature and, indeed, the history of Europe.

This facsimile edition of this rare and delightful work—which Penrose called "an image diary from the Balkans"—is published to coincide with the exhibition Surrealist Muse: Lee Miller, Roland Penrose, and Man Ray, 1925-1945, on view at the Getty Museum from February 25 to June 15, 2003.

Price: $19.95