A man in a dark suit and top hat bends over a large table heaped with raw cotton, his head bowed as he inspects the fibers with both hands. To his right, another figure stands upright, dressed in a light brown suit and straw hat, holding a sample of cotton and facing a third, less distinct figure at the edge of the scene. The composition is dominated by the expanse of white cotton, which fills the lower half of the picture and is rendered with loose, swirling brushstrokes that suggest its soft, cloud-like texture.

Behind the men, the wall is pale and nearly bare, except for a single framed picture showing a boat on blue-green water, which hangs at the right edge of the canvas. The light in the room is diffuse and cool, casting few shadows and giving the scene a subdued, almost hazy atmosphere. The paint is applied with visible, energetic strokes, especially in the cotton and the unfinished areas of the wall and floor, where the linen support shows through and the outlines remain sketchy.

The figures are arranged diagonally from left to right, leading the viewer’s gaze across the table and into the depth of the room, while the strong horizontal of the table anchors the composition. In the lower right corner, sketchy brown lines suggest the outline of a chair or piece of furniture, barely indicated against the pale floor. The background wall meets the floor at a sharp angle, with the floor rendered in thin, translucent washes of brown and ochre.

The light falls most strongly on the cotton and the upper back of the man in the brown suit, highlighting their textures and forms. Loose, unfinished lines and patches of bare canvas are visible along the bottom and right edges, especially beneath the framed picture.