Artists
Simon Vouet
- Country:
- France
- Birth year:
- 1590
- Death year:
- 1649
Simon Vouet (1590 Paris-1649 Paris) first learned his craft from his father, the painter Laurent Vouet. By the age of 14 he had already been called to England to do a portrait. In 1611 Vouet traveled to Constantinople, and in 1612 to Venice. Toward the end of 1613 he settled in Rome for approximately 15 years. In 1624, Voute was appointed rector of the Accademia di San Luca. At the behest of King Louis XIII (1601-1643), he returned to Paris in 1627 to become Peintre du Roi ("the king's painter"). This date is usually used to mark the beginning of the period of French painting known as neoclassicism. The multifaceted Vouet, who ran a large workshop, redecorated the interiors of numerous noble residences and castles and designed tapestries in addition to painting altarpieces and portraits for the royal court and the landed gentry. Some of his works are St. Mary Magdalena, c. 1630, Musee de Picardie, Amiens; Lot and His Daughters, 1633, Musee des Beaux Arts, Strassbourg; and The Martyrdom of St. Eustace, c. 1637, St-Eustache, Paris.