Landschap of braakliggend terrein c. 1903

This is a pencil drawing of a landscape, or perhaps a construction site, by George Hendrik Breitner. Breitner worked in the Netherlands during a time of rapid urbanization. The image shows us a loose sketch, seemingly of an industrial area, with some handwritten notes along the bottom. It is possible the notes are directions. What makes this drawing compelling is that Breitner has not romanticized this landscape. Instead, he shows the grittiness of industry. We can almost imagine him scribbling in his notebook at the edge of a muddy construction site, or on the outskirts of town, taking in this scene. The Rijksmuseum’s archives would be a valuable place to look for clues about the exact location and purpose of this drawing. By putting this drawing in its social and institutional context, we can understand how artists were capturing the changing world around them.