A single carved jack-o'-lantern sits low and centered, with triangular eyes and nose and a wide grin, nestled in a loose bed of dried oak leaves in tan, cream and umber. Above it, the near-black background takes up most of the frame.

Light from the upper left rakes across the pumpkin's ridges and the leaf edges before falling away into deep shadow. Loaded brushstrokes and soft canvas grain give it the feel of an old-master still life, with a restrained, quietly spooky mood.