Encouraged by regional showings in Valladolid, which were well-received, in 1862 he participated in the National Exhibition of Fine Arts with a painting depicting "The Cid's oath in Santa Gadea". Two years later, he presented a Biblical scene showing the "Raising of Jairus' daughter", in hopes of winning a scholarship to Rome, but he was not successful. He had no more significant showings until 1878, when he received a third-class medal for his painting "An Excorcism", which was then sent to the Exposition Universelle in Paris. In 1881, the city of Málaga acquired his painting of the two lovers whose suicide inspired the name of a local landmark; the "Peña de los Enamorados" (Lovers' Rock).