A man in a black top hat and dark suit sits at a table, his gaze directed outward as he pauses in the act of drawing or writing on a sheet of paper. His right hand holds a pencil or pen poised above the paper, while his left arm rests on the table, the cuff of his white shirt visible beneath his sleeve. The man's face is modeled with swift, confident marks, his mustache and intense eyes sharply defined against the softer treatment of his surroundings.

The table surface is suggested with quick, gestural strokes, and the overall composition is arranged so that the figure's dark silhouette stands out against the pale, glowing background. The brushwork throughout is energetic and visible, with areas of thick paint and visible texture, especially in the rendering of the man's hands and the folds of his clothing. The palette is dominated by deep blacks, creamy whites, and muted earth tones, with flashes of yellow and ochre in the glass and highlights.

A tall glass filled with a golden liquid sits on the table to the left of the man, with light reflecting off its surface. In the background, a pale vertical band suggests a window or light source, diffusing soft illumination across the left side of the composition. The upper left corner contains loose, abstract brushstrokes in greenish and yellowish tones, creating a sense of depth and atmosphere.

No other figures are visible in the scene, and the space behind the man is rendered in deep, shadowy browns and blacks. Paint is applied in sweeping, visible strokes along the table’s edge, with white and blue hues mingling to suggest reflected light. The man’s collar is crisply defined with sharp, light brushwork, contrasting with the softer, more blended treatment of the background. The painting once hung in the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston before it was stolen in 1990, and it remains unrecovered.