[2] He began with religious works, to obtain government commissions for church murals, as his student years had left him in poverty.

He returned to Algeria in 1861, due to health problems, and began working in the Orientalist genre; creating mostly portraits.

Together with Joseph Sintès and Alfred Chataud, he helped to establish the Algerian style of Orientalist painting, characterized by realistic representations of people and places.

In addition to painting, he composed numerous vocal melodies, several of which, such as Vive Paris and Retour en France, have become popular.

He also set some poems to music, notably Vous n'Étes Rien Près d'Elle by André Chanet [fr].