Léon Detroy was born in Chinon in 1859, a doctor father and a mother from the family Gilles de la Tourette, thus predisposing him to a life away from pecuniary needs.

He was introduced to painting by his maternal uncle, a collector in Loudun (Vienne) who knew Corot and Courbet. Around 1880 Leon Detroy decided to enter the Beaux-Arts in Paris; but, very quickly, the academism of his master, Jean-Paul Laurens, tires him and he leaves the studio. He is then keen on the outdoors and wants to paint on the grounds as the Impressionists now do.

In 1887, he discovered the Walks around a village of George Sand. It is a revelation for him: a few days later, he arrives in Creuse, even before Armand Guillaumin. He buys a house in Gargiles...