This large canvas of the Place de la Contrescarpe in the 5th arrondissement of Paris is centred on the facades of the houses on the rue Mouffetard (which runs alongside the square on the west side) on either side of the rue Blainville, including the one on the left with its characteristic two-storey attic. In perspective, a gap towards rue de l’Estrapade.

A crowd of people with umbrellas and raincoats are strolling along in couples or with children. In the foreground on the left, a bent-over woman stares down from under her pink umbrella. A few trees on the left, the clock of the square on the right, cars, a truck and mopeds complete the furniture of the scene.

The pink colours of the facades and the cloudy sky radiate a wonderful rainy atmosphere over the whole canvas, right down to the asphalt in the foreground, reinforced by darker patches (the roofs of the buildings and the pavement in the centre of the square).

Like a protective umbrella, the facades of Mouffe, the childhood neighbourhood so dear to the artist, watch over everyone, including a tramp, sitting in the foreground under the trees with his bottle of wine.