Studie, mogelijk van een wolkenlucht 1887

George Hendrik Breitner made this sketch of clouds, possibly in the Netherlands in the late 19th or early 20th century. It’s a simple charcoal drawing on paper, but it opens up questions about the changing role of art institutions in his time. Breitner belonged to a generation that saw the rise of art academies and public museums. Artists were now expected to master observational drawing, often through studies of nature. But this artwork might be more than a simple study, it is also an experiment in capturing the transient effects of light and atmosphere. Was it a study for a painting, or a finished work in its own right? It challenges the distinction between the two. The Rijksmuseum can help us to understand Breitner's artistic development. By comparing his sketches with his finished paintings, and looking at exhibition records, we can begin to grasp the historical context of his work and his place within the Dutch art world.