Complex sentence: Initially, as can be seen in the preliminary sketch, someone grasped the baton as if it was a paint brush; for verisimilitude Eakins had Charles M. Schmitz, the conductor of the Germania Orchestra and Cook's teacher, pose holding the baton.
Split into simpler sentences: Initially, as can be seen in the preliminary sketch, the hand grasped the baton as if it were a paint brush. For verisimilitude Eakins had Charles M. Schmitz, the conductor of the Germania Orchestra and Cook's teacher, pose holding the baton.