Figuren 1893

This sketchbook page by George Hendrik Breitner features pencil drawings of figures. Here, the artist captures fleeting impressions in a quick, economical manner, using the most basic of materials. The pencil lines vary in weight and intensity. Some are firm and descriptive, others are just faint suggestions of form. The subtle texture of the paper adds another dimension to the drawing. The grid provides a structure for the composition, while the smudges and erasures reveal the artist's process of experimentation. Breitner trained as an academic painter, but he was also interested in capturing the reality of everyday life. The immediacy of this sketch reflects the changing urban landscape and the rise of industrial capitalism. The artist seems to be searching for new ways of representing the world around him. In doing so, Breitner blurs the boundaries between fine art and the more workaday practice of sketching, inviting us to appreciate the artistry inherent in the simplest of materials and the most spontaneous of gestures.