Gezicht op gebouwen 1881 - 1883

Editor: So, this is Breitner's "Gezicht op gebouwen," or "View of Buildings," made with pencil around 1881-1883. It feels almost like a fleeting thought captured on paper. There's a raw simplicity that I find really intriguing, but also kind of perplexing. What do you see in it? Curator: I see a quiet kind of poetry, wouldn't you say? These hasty lines, they're more than just sketches; they’re whispers of a city awakening, seen through the artist’s bleary eyes perhaps! Notice how the impressions create more space for us to weave our stories within his fragmented one? Do you see the sky there? Editor: Is that... sky? It almost looks like a stain, an unintentional mark. Curator: Maybe. Or perhaps a memory. Breitner's Impressionism wasn't just about capturing light; it was about seizing a feeling. He isn't after sterile realism, is he? I think, like a dream you try to remember as you reach for your coffee mug. This one is housed at the Rijksmuseum, by the way. How do you suppose it might've gotten there? Editor: Maybe he carried it around for years, tucked inside his coat pocket? I never would've associated such raw immediacy with a place like the Rijksmuseum! It definitely makes me see the period differently! Curator: I always love that bit, that it rattles what we expect. Think how many stories like this we might have, if only we kept looking… Editor: I will now, that's for sure! Thanks!