 In 1886, he obtained a travelling scholarship and went to Italy, together with Henri-Jean Guillaume Martin and Ernest Laurent; studying the Old Masters.Along with Seurat, he worked as an assistant to Puvis de Chavannes, helping him to realize several of his murals.In 1892, he painted a portrait of the poet, Paul Verlaine, during his convalescence for syphilis at the in the 14th arrondissement of Paris.