The branches in this composition create a sinuous abstract pattern and hint at an oriental influence in Cézanne's watercolors.

On the "Oriental flavor" of such works, Fritz
Novotny has remarked: "The large surfaces of
uncovered white of the watercolors, which only
to a very small degree serve an illusionistic
effect, appear as a mysterious, positive, and
active element in which the color as well as the
linear contour with barely hinted modeling are
anchored.... Yet the obvious relationship
between Cézanne's watercolors and the
monochrome brush drawings of Far Eastern draftsmen
by no means resides in the concept of drawing as
an art of the line, but lies essentially in the
integration of the represented objects into
the extensive stretches of similarly uncovered
surfaces." (J. Reward, op. cit., p. 213)

The present watercolor resembles several views of L'Estaque, with the bay in the distance, although no chimneys are visible. "This is a superb example of the freedom and--yes--joy with which Cézanne tackled watercolor, as well as of the mixture of spontaneity and meditation that characterizes such creations." (ibid.)