Studies van een slee c. 1886 - 1923

George Hendrik Breitner made this drawing, Studies van een slee, on paper, and it's now at the Rijksmuseum. Looking at this wispy sketch, I can imagine Breitner with his pencil, hovering over the page, feeling his way around this sled. You know, the feeling when you're trying to capture something quickly, before it disappears. See how the lines dance and overlap? They're not just describing the sled; they're capturing a sense of movement, of being in the midst of things. There's a real urgency to it. Maybe he was thinking about Japanese prints with their calligraphic lines. It is a study after all, a moment to record a fleeting scene. It reminds me of the way Degas would capture dancers in motion. These artists are all in conversation, aren’t they? Trying to pin down the slippery, gorgeous mess of life.