Close to the artistic environment of Marseille, including artists such as Emile Loubon and Alfred Monticelli, Paul Guigou settles in Paris in the early 1860s. He regularly takes part in the Salon where he receives a favorable response. The art critic Castagnary wrote in 1870 « Ciels, terres, perspectives profondes, tout y passe ; M. Paul Guigou nous raconte les plaines lumineuses de la Provence« . Although he made his career in Paris, his work is linked to his native Provence. The painter came back to walk the banks of the Durance every summer, as well as the Sainte-Victoire moutain, leading to the Mediterranean.