Paul Lecomte, painter of landscapes and coastal scenes, was born in Paris on April 15, 1842. He studied under Emile-Charles Lambinet and exhibited regularly at the Paris Salon from 1868 onwards, obtaining an honorable mention in 1882, a third-class medal in 1888, and a second class medal in 1895. He also received an honorable mention at the Exposition Universelle of 1889 and a silver medal at the Exposition Universelle of 1900.

He painted mainly in Ile-de-France, Brittany and Normandy, though he also created a number of purely impressionistic works in the Basque region. Lydia Harambourg notes of Lecomte’s watercolors: “These very fresh impressionistic aquarelles make me think of those landscapes wherein the serenity of the countryside is perfectly depicted”. He died in Paris in 1920 and today one of his paintings, Le Pont Neuf, which was exhibited at the Salon of 1877, is in the Museum of Mulhouse. His son, Paul-Emile Lecomte was also a well-known artist.