A cluster of ochre-roofed buildings fills the lower part of the composition, their geometric forms overlapping and interlocking in a dense pattern. The blue water of the bay is rendered in broad, blocklike brushstrokes, with subtle variations in tone suggesting movement and depth. On the far shore, a line of low, purplish mountains runs almost parallel to the horizon, their contours softened by atmospheric blues and violets.

Above the mountains, the sky occupies nearly half the canvas, filled with swirling, textured strokes of blue, white, and touches of yellow, evoking shifting light and air. The brushwork is visible throughout, with thick, deliberate strokes that build up the forms and lend the surface a sense of volume and structure. No figures appear in the scene; the focus remains on the arrangement of land, water, and architecture, and the relationships between their forms.

A plume of white smoke rises from a chimney near the lower right, curling against the blue water behind it. Several tall, narrow chimneys punctuate the rooftops, painted with vertical strokes of dark brown and black. Green patches of vegetation are interspersed among the ochre buildings, especially toward the left and center foreground.

The left edge of the painting shows a sloping hillside dotted with small, rectangular structures and green fields. The far right edge is bordered by a dark, rounded mountain that looms above the bay. The lower left corner contains a cluster of leafy green trees rendered with loose, rounded dabs of paint.

Sunlight falls unevenly across the scene, illuminating some roofs with pale yellow while others remain in shadow. The water near the shore is painted with hints of green and turquoise, blending into deeper blue toward the center. The sky at the upper left corner is lighter, with more white and pale blue, suggesting thinner clouds or brighter light.

Short, parallel brushstrokes define the edges of the hills and buildings, giving a sense of structure and rhythm throughout the composition. The Bay of Marseilles, Seen from L’Estaque was painted by Paul Cézanne around 1885, depicting the view from the village of L’Estaque toward the sea and distant mountains.