claude vignon was a french painter, printmaker and illustrator who worked in a wide range of genres. during a period of study in italy, he became exposed to many new artistic currents, in particular through the works of caravaggio and his followers, guercino, guido reni and annibale caracci. a prolific artist, his work has remained enigmatic, contradictory and hard to define within a single term or style. his mature works are vibrantly coloured, splendidly lit and often extremely expressive. vignon worked in a fluent technique, resulting in an almost electric brushwork. he particularly excell…