Duinlandschap 1881 - 1883

George Hendrik Breitner created this drawing of a landscape using graphite on paper. Here, the directness and simplicity of the materials is key to understanding the work. Breitner has made no attempt to disguise the physical properties of the graphite. You can see its slightly reflective sheen, and the way it catches on the textured surface of the paper. Consider the process. Breitner would have held a graphite stick, and moved it with his fingers and wrist across the paper surface. The marks that resulted are not just representations of something seen, but also indexical traces of Breitner's movements in space and time. The quickness of this method also allowed Breitner to capture a sense of immediacy. In this way, the drawing embodies an act of labor. It is a social document, a record of Breitner's encounter with the landscape and the conditions in which he produced this image.