Figuur, mogelijk op straat 1886 - 1923

George Hendrik Breitner made this sketch, possibly of a street scene, with pencil on paper. There’s a real sense of immediacy here, like he's just trying to capture a fleeting impression, a moment in time. You can almost feel the artist's hand moving quickly across the page. The sketch has this wonderful rawness, a kind of directness that I really respond to. The lines are scratchy and uneven, and you can see where he's gone over them again and again, trying to find the right form. Look at the cluster of darker lines towards the middle of the page; they seem to suggest a figure or a group of people, but it's all very ambiguous and open-ended. That tension between representation and abstraction is really compelling. Breitner reminds me a little of Degas, another artist who was fascinated by capturing the energy and movement of modern life. But where Degas' work can feel quite polished and refined, Breitner's has this rough-and-ready quality that I find really appealing. It’s a reminder that art is as much about the process of making as it is about the finished product.