Dieren voor een sculptuur 1921 - 1922

This sketchy drawing of animals around a sculpture was made by Isaac Israels, though we don't know exactly when. The marks are so loose and free, you can almost feel Israels' hand moving across the page, trying to capture the light and the way the animals move. I love how he hasn't labored over the details. Instead, he's gone for the overall impression, the feeling of a park or garden. Check out the way he's rendered the sculpture with just a few bold lines, then compare it to the scrawled scribbles of the foliage above it. There's this wonderful contrast between the solid, still form and the natural, chaotic energy of the plants, not to mention the animals dashing about. It’s like he's showing us how everything is interconnected, sculpture, nature, animals, all part of the same scene. Reminds me of the sketches of Manet, quick impressions that manage to convey so much with so little. It's this openness, this willingness to leave things unresolved, that makes the drawing so engaging.