Seated Female Nude 1875 - 1934

Isaac Israels made this drawing, 'Seated Female Nude' with what looks like a graphite pencil, and the magic is in how quickly the artist seems to have worked. There is a real dynamism to the piece, and I think it shows a process led way of working. I love the subtle tonal variations Israels manages to create here, with the most pressure applied to the hair and the barest suggestion of a line used to define the legs. You can almost feel the artist thinking through the problem of how to render form with such limited means. I'm drawn to the parallel lines used to describe the shins, which feel so assured and economic. This drawing reminds me a little of Matisse, who also used line in a very expressive and immediate way. Ultimately, for me, art is about that feeling of connection to the artist's thought process, and this drawing really delivers that.