The Musée des Augustins presents a fairly complete overview of Italianate historical landscape. Boguet (1755-1839) was one who was absent from this ensemble. This painter’s world is sun-drenched, peaceful, and harmonious. He lived his life almost exclusively in Italy without any particularly notable stylistic change during his long career.

Our View of Tiber, Roman Countryside demonstrates these qualities in the completed portion, but it is very much its incomplete state that gives it unusual appeal and makes it of exceptional interest to the world of art history.

The museum also had no works of Baron Lejeune (1775-1848), former curator of the museum and mayor of Toulouse.

This Waterfall at Lake Oô near Bagnères-de-Luchon, dating from 1834 and always kept by the artist’s family, is an interpretation of a known site, a scene of a picturesque genre. The painter is also particularly known for his portrayals of Napoleonic battles, found at Versailles.

Benjamin-Constant (1845-1902) was born in Paris and spent his childhood in Toulouse, where he spent time at the Beaux Arts and there won the painting Grand Prix. He continued his training in Paris and studied at Cabanel’s studio. After the war, he ended his studies and travels (from whence come his orientalist influences) and became known internationally.

He worked on the décor of the Salles des Illustres at the Capitol. The museum possesses his most monumental painting, The Entry of Mohamet II into Constantinople, sketches for his great Toulouse and Parisian décor work (the Count of Toulouse had his standards blessed at Saint-Sernin and a head study for The Entry of Urbain II into Toulouse) and moving family portraits, Portrait of Emmanuel, son of the artist.

Many great 19th-century sculptors are Toulouse natives, and the museum feels a responsibility to present and bring recognition to their works. Even though most of these artists went up to Paris to establish their careers at exhibitions, they often maintained fruitful contacts with their native region.

Alexandre Falguières, Professor at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris and considered the leader of this “Toulouse school,” trained a good number of young artists who, like him, came from the South: Mercié, Rivière, Mengue, and Marqueste… The museum is always on the lookout for beautiful articles, and therefore proposes an ever-evolving perspective on the careers of these sculptors, from the 1850s to the early 20th century.

While acquiring part of the studio collection of sculptor Sylvestre Clerk, the museum was able to add an ensemble of three sculptures by the artist, as well as a beautiful collection by Toulouse sculptors from the between-war period: Parayre, Privat, Monin, Duler, etc. The gift of a bas-relief by Georges Vivent, a well-known Toulouse figure, completes this overview.