This is part of a group of keenly observed depictions of Harwich, a town that is located on the estuaries of the Stour and Orwell rivers. Brill's fascination with Harwich led to the production of a number of preparatory drawings and paintings, in addition to the larger completed oil The Buoys. The large oil demonstrates that, although Brill is best known for his figurative works, concerned with depicting working-class people, he was also concerned with form and colour. In the words of Judith Bumpus, the buoys at Harwich were 'ready-made still lifes', that were 'a surprising, but perfect, subject for his explorations of colour'. (Bumpus, 'Reginald Brill', )