Gezicht in Amsterdam, mogelijk het Rokin c. 1902 - 1914

This is a graphite drawing by George Hendrik Breitner, showing a view in Amsterdam. I imagine him standing there, on the street, holding his sketchbook, trying to quickly capture the light on the buildings. The lines are so raw and immediate, you can feel the energy in his hand as he’s sketching. It’s like he’s not trying to be perfect, just trying to get the essence of the place down, the bare minimum to suggest depth, recession, and volume. Look at how he uses these quick, almost scribbled lines to define the architecture and the trees; they're so economical, yet they tell you everything you need to know. It reminds me a bit of some of Philip Guston’s later drawings – that same kind of directness and vulnerability. Artists are always in conversation with each other, even across time, riffing on each other's ideas, pushing the boundaries of what drawing and painting can be.