Schets van een stadsgezicht 1870 - 1935

This sketch of a cityscape was made with watercolour by Max Liebermann. It’s all about the fluidity of the medium, seeing how the colours bleed and blend, creating a sense of atmosphere and impermanence. The browns and blues are diluted, almost transparent, giving it that faded, dreamy quality. Look at the way the washes pool and settle, creating these soft-edged shapes. The white of the paper peeks through, adding to the lightness. The spire of the building at the top right, it’s not a solid form but more like a suggestion, a ghost of a structure. It reminds me of Turner, who was also obsessed with light and atmosphere. But where Turner goes for drama, Liebermann keeps it simple, intimate, and kind of melancholy. It’s like he’s capturing a fleeting moment, a memory of a place, rather than a literal depiction. It's a reminder that art is not about perfect representation, but about feeling and interpretation.