In 1833, with a grant from the Board of Commerce, he went to Rome where he studied with Antoni Solà [ca] and was an assistant in the workshops of Pietro Tenerani.

Although his style owed much to Romanticism, he also introduced elements of Realism; giving his work an eclectic character.

[1] His early works, in Barcelona, focused on Biblical and mythological subjects; including Jason stealing the golden fleece and the trial of Daniel in Babylon.

[2] His specifically Mexican subjects include Moctezuma, La Malinche, Iturbide and Tlahuicole, as well as numerous busts; notably Lucas Alamán and Antonio López de Santa Anna.

[1] He died of pneumonia, aged only forty-eight, and was interred at the iglesia de Jesús Nazareno [es], where his students created a monument in his memory.