Known as the main leader of the Toulon School, Vincent Courdouan returned to his native town at the end of his apprenticeship in the capital. He settled there, making Toulon the starting point of his peregrinations on the Mediterranean coast of Var.
The painter favored panoramic formats, which gave him the opportunity to take a deep breath on the sea. He did not forget the Provençal hinterland, which he liked to paint green and bushy, unlike the powdery grounds crushed by the heat wave of Emile Loubon. His contrasting palette allows him to render, even in his inland landscapes, a peaceful shady atmosphere, where it is good to stop before venturing out again under a blazing sun. Vincent Courdouan, a marine painter, is also known for the orientalist compositions he brought back from his stays in North Africa and Egypt, which he discovered in 1865 at the invitation of a naval company for which he had already done several decorations.
Health problems during this trip forced him to give up his place to Raphaël Ponson on the decoration of the private apartments of the Prefecture of Marseille. Appointed professor of drawing at the Ecole de la Marine, then honorary director of the Toulon Museum in 1857, the artist remained deeply attached to his native region throughout his career.