Brug over de Leliegracht in Amsterdam c. 1893s - 1903s

This sketch of a bridge over the Leliegracht in Amsterdam is by George Hendrik Breitner. With just a pencil, the artist captures the light and architectural essence of the location. I can imagine Breitner standing there, squinting maybe, trying to distill the scene before him onto a single piece of paper. See those sketchy, tentative lines? To me, they speak of the joy of looking. I bet he was out there, just thinking about how to turn a three-dimensional world into something on a flat surface. I know that feeling! The bridge emerges out of the page with an exciting sense of three-dimensionality. The marks feel casual but are so descriptive. I notice the way the shadows are defined with quick strokes. The sketch is an open invitation for us to imagine, to reconstruct, and to participate in the act of seeing. It makes you wonder, doesn't it, what the artist might have done next?