Gezicht op een straat met een paard-en-wagen c. 1909

Editor: Here we have George Hendrik Breitner's "View of a Street with a Horse and Carriage," from around 1909, created with charcoal on paper. It feels incredibly spontaneous. What strikes you most about this sketch? Curator: Immediately, the dynamism created by Breitner's loose charcoal strokes asserts itself. The composition is divided into two registers, left and right; to analyse this relationship through principles of Gestalt psychology may reveal that closure is activated by the left panel featuring partial outline of a buggy. Editor: Closure? I'm not familiar with that in relation to art. Curator: Closure is the mind's propensity to complete incomplete forms. Note the partial rendition of the horse and buggy. This element invites the eye to complete the image, generating a feeling of movement. Editor: Interesting. I can see how my eye does want to resolve it somehow. What about the right side? Curator: Observe how, contrastingly, the lines on the right are frantic. What feeling is evoked by the texture generated through rapid application of charcoal? Editor: Unease, perhaps. Or maybe just the hustle and bustle of city life? The strokes feel much less refined than the other elements, so the composition feels off balance. Curator: Precisely. The lack of refinement may suggest a commentary on the emergent chaos of the modern urban experience; however, what's noteworthy is how these marks interplay tonally. Do these strokes undermine the stability suggested through forms on the opposite panel, or do they complement it? Editor: I think I see it – the looseness emphasizes the solid, anchored form of the buggy by contrast, but the combination implies that both the buggy and its surroundings belong to a whole environment. Curator: A holistic understanding indeed. Studying artworks through these lenses of opposition enables us to explore a variety of artistic nuances. Editor: That was truly fascinating, thanks for sharing this new lens for seeing this interesting drawing!