Born into a family of artists. Rigalt is considered the first natural landscape painter in Catalonia, a pioneer for those who would follow him, such as Martí Alsina and Joaquim Vayreda.
He was a lecturer in perspective at the School of Fine Arts in Barcelona and an academician of merit at the San Fernando School in Madrid. In addition to his facet as a painter and draughtsman, he also worked as an editor and set designer, as well as a decorator through his works.