Studie, mogelijk van een brug c. 1903

This is a sketch, possibly of a bridge, made by George Hendrik Breitner. The lines here are so fleeting, so tentative, it feels like Breitner is thinking out loud with his pencil. I love that the ground of the paper is left bare; it gives the impression that the image has emerged from the surface, rather than being imposed upon it. It's all about process. Check out how the bridge supports are represented by just a few strokes. It's like he's saying, "Here's the essence, the bare minimum needed to convey the idea of a bridge." The texture of the paper itself becomes part of the image. Breitner's quick studies remind me of the work of the American painter, James McNeill Whistler, who was interested in capturing fleeting moments and atmospheric effects with minimal means. Both artists embraced ambiguity and valued suggestion over explicit detail. For both, the unfinished quality of the work invites us to participate in the act of seeing, to complete the image in our own minds.