Schetsboek met 16 bladen 1912

Editor: We’re looking at "Sketchbook with 16 sheets" by George Hendrik Breitner, created in 1912. It's a collection of drawings using materials like watercolor, colored pencil, and paper, housed in the Rijksmuseum. The cover has an unassuming look that seems to belie the vibrant, impressionistic sketches that are supposed to be inside. What kind of statement was Breitner trying to make with it? Curator: Breitner was deeply invested in depicting the gritty realities of Amsterdam, a city undergoing rapid social and economic change in the early 20th century. The sketchbook itself, in its plainness, contrasts with the energetic and often fleeting scenes captured within. This contrast becomes an assertion: beauty and meaning can be found in the everyday, in the experiences of ordinary people. These images aren’t sanitized depictions; they give space for narratives previously disregarded by traditional artistic circles. The sketches within, depicting horses and streets, what do they say to you? Editor: They seem so immediate and raw. Almost like Breitner quickly captured a moment without any pretense. Curator: Precisely! It speaks to his engagement with capturing the immediacy of urban life and rejecting academic ideals of beauty, an idea shared with other Impressionists. He gives an authentic, unidealized glimpse into the lives of working-class people, their modes of transport, and the spaces they inhabit. Consider that at the time, rapid industrialization exacerbated class divides and these drawings became political acts. How can art challenge us to confront uncomfortable truths about society? Editor: I see now; by embracing realism and the lives of ordinary people, Breitner pushed back against traditional representations and brought attention to overlooked perspectives and socio-economic structures. It shows the way artistic practice reflects lived reality. Curator: Exactly. The sketchbook embodies that push. What was originally unseen and unheard suddenly gets foregrounded! Editor: I’ll never look at a simple drawing the same way again!