[4] During this time, Luna also had to deal with the death of an infant daughter and the alleged extra-marital affair of his wife Paz Pardo de Tavera with a French physician.

It portrayed a scene inside a café in Paris with a woman identified as a courtesan or a prostitute representing "fallen womanhood",[7] who was about to rise from a sofa[7] overshadowing three men placed at the far left corner of the painting.

Apart from the prominent figure of the female wearing a pale lavender frock and a hat embellished with flowers, fronted by two glasses of beers and an empty beer mug[3] belying a "company of men", The Parisian Life portrayed a glimpse of Luna's own life in the capital of France while accompanied by two close friends.

The evident intimate mood of the painting was further enhanced by Luna by placing the details of the deserted hat and cape, the pulled-out chair,[4] and the coat on the sofa.

[3] According to Eric Zerrudo, the director of the Museum of the Government Service Insurance System during a lecture at a week-long SM Mall exhibit, the woman in The Parisian Life has a "geographical likeness" to the mirror-image of the archipelago of the Philippines.

[3] As a cultural and historical artwork, The Parisian Life does not solely embody the “intangible ideas of the Filipino national consciousness” but also Luna's talent as an artist.

Before its modern-day exhibition at Christie's auction house in Hong Kong, The Parisian Life was featured on page 147 of Santiago Albano Pilar's book entitled Juan Luna, The Filipino as Painter published in 1980.