Vouet, Simon (sēmôN` vwā), 1590–1649, French portrait and decorative painter. He first established himself as a successful painter in Rome. Recalled to France in 1627 as court painter to Louis XIII, he decorated several of the royal palaces. Vouet was the first to introduce the Italian baroque style into France. After his return to Paris, he began to work in a more classical and decorative vein. He created new devices in illusionism and developed a splendid manner that formed the foundation of French 17th-century painting. Le Brun, Mignard, and Le Sueur were among the pupils who perpetuated his style. Several of his paintings are in the Louvre.

Vouet, Simon

(born Jan. 9, 1590, Paris, France—died June 30, 1649, Paris) French painter. He formed his style in Italy, where he lived from 1614 to 1627. His early work was influenced by Caravaggio, but works done after 1620 display more idealized figures and use more evenly diffused white light. He returned to Paris in 1627 to become first painter to Louis XIII. Thereafter he won almost all the important commissions and dominated the city artistically for the next 15 years. He introduced the Italian Baroque style in France with such paintings as St. Charles Borromeo (c. 1640). His late works display the soft, idealized modeling, sensuous forms, and bright colours for which he is best known.