José Arrúe belongs to the group of Basque artists who, in the late 1800s and early 1900s, defended and exalted Basque traditions through their paintings. Unlike other painters of his time, he did not attempt to denounce or to portray a dramatic reality, but to describe traditional customs with a convivial and humorous approach that captured, not just rural life, but also the evolution of modern society. His painting and graphic work portrays a wide-ranging repertoire of traditions and characters from the Basque Country, always executed from a comical and modern gaze and with great aplomb.

The painting in hand depicts an everyday scene, captured almost in the manner of a snapshot, that takes place in front of the old Banco de Vizcaya, an important building designed in 1903 by José María Basterra (1859-1932) and lately demolished as a result of new city zoning requirements. The building follows the typology of the rest of the Ensanche district of Bilbao dating from the early years of the twentieth century. Framed against a clearly recognisable backdrop, the painting contains an interesting gallery of characters frozen in a variety of instants as if by a photograph. Based on a carefully meditated composition that conveys the hustle and of city life to perfection, the iconographic repertoire combines rural types with modern urban life. The villagers, overawed by the rapid urban growth, are seen alongside city characters, mostly women, dressed in the fashion of the 1920s, introduced in Spain after the First World War. And so the painting also functions as a visual record of the historical moment in which both rural and urban were beginning to coexist in a natural way.

Since the early days of his career, his work as an illustrator would be an evident influence on his style and his output. This painting is a clear example of his skills as a drawing artist, as well as of the power of observation that allowed him to create a graphic chronicle of his time, always with his highly personal sense of humour. Worth mentioning are the effective use of the palette and the painterly harmony, achieved through the use of contrasting pure flat colours, reinforced by superb lighting. Everything converges to create a scene that conveys an exquisite sensibility. The goal of the painting was to show scenes from Basque daily life through the placid, precise and spontaneous language common to the customs and manners movement. In this way, Arrúe managed to establish a direct connection with the public of his time, which brought him resounding success throughout his whole career.