Studie c. 1903

This study by George Hendrik Breitner looks like it was quickly jotted down in pencil, perhaps in a small notebook. You can almost feel the artist’s hand moving swiftly across the page, trying to capture the essence of the subject with just a few lines. I bet Breitner was out and about when he made this, maybe taking a break in a park or café, and he was struck by something he saw. There’s a real intimacy to these kinds of sketches; they feel like a direct line to the artist’s eye and mind. The thin, somewhat tentative lines suggest he was exploring and discovering the form as he went along. You know, drawing like this is kind of like thinking out loud. It's like Breitner's sharing with us what he was thinking about and how artists are always in conversation, learning from and building upon each other’s work. It's this exchange that keeps the creative spirit alive, don’t you think?