Melancholy

A man sits sideways on a white chair, chin propped on his hand, cradling a small black cat in his lap; his trousers are rolled and his feet bare. Behind him a nude woman sits cross-legged on the rose-toned rock, and to the right a small table draped in white holds bread and a red cup beside an empty chair, with a dog lying at its foot.

A single rose-pink tone washes across figures, rock, and pale water, broken only by white cloth and the black of the cat and dog. Paint is applied in soft, hazy layers with little contrast, softening every edge. The averted gaze, closed posture, and muted light give the scene a heavy, melancholic stillness.