Deel van een tuba 1875 - 1934

Curator: At first glance, this sketch appears quite minimal and abstract. Editor: That’s exactly what I thought! There's a ghostliness to it; very preliminary, almost as if the subject is just emerging. Curator: We’re looking at "Part of a Tuba" by Isaac Israels, likely created sometime between 1875 and 1934. It is currently held here at the Rijksmuseum. It’s rendered with a combination of pencil and ink. You can see Israels's light touch, exploring form through very sparse lines. Editor: Knowing it's a tuba transforms my reading of it. But I am curious why focus on only part of the instrument? What aspect was he interested in capturing by singling this out? And what could it say about music consumption in Dutch society during his life and after? Curator: It highlights Israels's interest in process over polished product. We're given insight into the labour of observing and sketching and thinking through form. The quick, economic use of the materials further underscores this sense of capturing an fleeting impression or specific feature. Perhaps he found beauty not in the complete object but in this detail. Or it could be related to what function the image has: part of the record from rehearsals perhaps. Editor: I see it as more than a detail. The sketch embodies a time when art began moving beyond traditional representation. It's also a shift toward showing how musical instruments, like this tuba part, gain significance in our shared cultural consciousness, especially within changing museum displays and art education trends. Curator: Absolutely, thinking about it now, one can almost hear the faint brassy echo emanating from these suggestive lines, reflecting on both artistic and musical practice. It leaves the impression that seeing one small part means something much bigger for us. Editor: Indeed, both visually and conceptually. This unassuming sketch resonates, inviting us to listen attentively.