Portret van een onbekende vrouw c. 1886 - 1903

Curator: Right now we’re looking at "Portret van een onbekende vrouw," or Portrait of an Unknown Woman, a pencil drawing made by George Hendrik Breitner somewhere between 1886 and 1903. It's housed right here at the Rijksmuseum. Editor: She seems so… tired. I immediately noticed the downward cast of her eyes and the slump of her shoulder. It gives the piece this really melancholic atmosphere. Curator: Yes, Breitner’s realism definitely captures something very raw. Considering his focus on capturing urban life and its inhabitants, I wonder about this woman’s story. Pencil was a cost-effective material for preliminary sketching and studies, which allowed Breitner to capture these transient moments quickly. Editor: It also speaks to the act of looking and recording itself. Breitner wasn’t using some expensive paint and canvas. This is very immediate; pencil to paper. Did that directness influence his artistic choices? Did the economic realities of being an artist in Amsterdam affect his production of this and similar sketches? Curator: Possibly. Although, I think his rapid, impressionistic style in general lends itself perfectly to that sense of immediacy. The sketchiness invites you to fill in the blanks, to project your own narrative onto her. There’s a striking vulnerability to the nudity that emphasizes a social disparity when contextualized with labor and art production. Editor: Absolutely. And you notice that she’s presented on lined paper ripped from a notebook or sketchbook—the studio labor becomes plainly visible, stripped of its idealization. Curator: Breitner seems more interested in depicting real life. Though the subject's identity is unknown, the sketch offers such an intimate, personal glimpse into her life and times. It makes one reflect on both artist and model and their respective social roles. Editor: Yes, it is more than just a sketch; it's a story waiting to be told, made visible through the simplest means.