Carrying his sketchbook, the painter would roam the streets of his beloved Amsterdam for days at a time. He mostly painted ‘ordinary’ people in the city, and described himself as 'the painter of the people’. Breitner also used his camera to capture scenes of city life. His painting echoed his signature photographic style, with human figures partly cut off by the frame. Not everyone understood this style, rendered in thick brush strokes and smudges. While journalists were critical of his work, his fans loved it, and today Breitner remains one of the most renowned impressionists of his time.
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