Studie 1875 - 1934

Isaac Israels made this study in an unknown year with pen and brush in gray on paper. It is held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. This artwork shows a series of brushstrokes that appear to be abstract but could suggest something more concrete if we give them a social and institutional context. Israels would likely have been aware of new ideas concerning the function of art. As a resident of the Netherlands he may have known of the Hague School, and he was certainly part of the Amsterdam Impressionism movement. We might investigate the ways he used his materials as well as his choice of subject matter. His work could be seen to comment on the social structures of his time if we find that he was trying to innovate within existing art institutions. Art historians might use online databases of exhibition records as well as collections catalogues to understand this image better. Art is so often contingent on these kinds of institutional contexts.