Annotaties 1917

This is a page of notes, a sketchbook, created by George Hendrik Breitner; there’s no date, but it's likely around the early 20th century. I love seeing what an artist jots down, their grocery lists, notes from a meeting, because you get this sense of how an image comes into being, how it emerges through trial, error, and intuition. These notations, like layered thoughts and gestures, become a visual record of Breitner's mind at work. I imagine him, maybe on a train, or in a cafe, quickly scribbling down ideas and observations. I can almost feel the scratch of his pen on the paper. The text, almost like a private language, suggests the artist’s world; “kunst” and “Bonisee”, and even "Blanco" from the stationary store all seem like clues. I start to wonder: how do these random thoughts and observations connect to his wider practice? I love the way artists are always in conversation, across time and space, inspiring each other’s creativity. A page like this reminds me of the messiness of making, the beauty of uncertainty, and all the different meanings that an artwork can reveal.