Schetsboek met 37 bladen 1880 - 1882

This is George Hendrik Breitner’s sketchbook, consisting of 37 leaves. Though simple in appearance, the sketchbook is rich in texture and quiet tones. The cover, a worn fabric with subtle cross-hatching, is stained and marked with the residue of time and use. Its colour, a muted brown, suggests a raw, unadorned quality. Breitner, a prominent figure associated with the Amsterdam Impressionism movement, likely used this sketchbook to capture fleeting moments from everyday life. In its materiality, the sketchbook suggests a sense of immediacy and the preliminary nature of sketches, separate from finished works. This object exists as both art and artifact. It invites us to consider the artist’s creative process and question the established distinction between preparatory work and the work of art itself. Its weathered surface reflects how art challenges fixed meanings, engaging with new ways of thinking about the creative process.