The thesis is about the cultural links between Paris and Modena during the government of Francesco I (1629-1658) and Alfonso IV (1658-1662) and explains how the French artists at the Este court contributed to define the image of ducal power. The diplomatic correspondence of Abbot Ercole Manzieri, resident of François I in Paris in 1650, revealed an intense traffic of portraits, jewelry and clothes that came from Paris to Modena, testing a large French influence on the taste and the Este costume. Outlining the links between the two courts, the thesis deals with the figure of Girolamo Graziani, poet and secretary of state at the service of the Este and, at the same time, sponsored by Louis XIV for some panegyrics not well known until now. The study then focuses on the activities of Jean Boulanger, first painter of Francesco I, clarifying his formation and his role at the Este court. This work focuses on his paintings in the Palazzo Ducale in Sassuolo and, in particular, the Bacchus gallery, that turned out to be inspired by french models for its architecture, iconography and function. The last section is dedicated to 'French' commission by Alfonso IV and focuses on Boulanger decorative cycle in the lost ducal villa of Pentetorri, analyzed for the first time in its organic structure, and on the funeral that Alfonso wanted to commemorate his deceased father as immortalized in the Idea di un prencipe. This work, one of the leading printing examples of the seventeenth century, shapes the image of ducal power thanks to a rich repertoire of illustrations in which several artists took part, including French artists, whose names and ways of recruitment are specified here as well.