Studie 1895 - 1898

This sketch was made by George Hendrik Breitner, likely in the late 19th or early 20th century, with graphite on paper. It's a quick study, capturing a fleeting moment with rapid strokes. The choice of graphite and paper is significant. These are humble, accessible materials, readily available and easily portable. Breitner wasn't interested in the laborious, time-consuming processes of academic painting. Instead, he embraced immediacy, capturing scenes from modern urban life with the speed and directness of a sketch. The sketch’s marks are not just lines on a page, they are traces of the artist’s movement, his eye darting across the scene, selecting details, and quickly transcribing them onto paper. It is the artist's labor that we see directly reflected on the page, a testament to the value of the artist’s skill and experience. In its raw simplicity, this sketch challenges our notions of what constitutes a finished work of art. It asks us to consider the value of process, of observation, and of the artist's hand.