Gezicht op een brug over een gracht te Amsterdam 1907 - 1909

This is a graphite drawing titled ‘View of a bridge over a canal in Amsterdam’ made by George Hendrik Breitner in 1857. There's something so raw and immediate about seeing an artist's first thoughts on paper, isn’t there? Breitner's drawing here is all about gesture. Look at the way he captures the essence of the bridge with just a few strokes. It’s like he's trying to grab a fleeting moment, and you can almost feel the energy of his hand moving across the page. The texture of the paper itself becomes part of the drawing, adding a sense of depth and atmosphere. That dark curved mark suggesting the near edge of the bridge is great, like a calligraphic flourish, full of confidence and authority. This sketch reminds me a little of some of Philip Guston’s later, more pared-down drawings. It’s proof that sometimes less really is more, and that the simplest marks can be the most powerful.