Studie, mogelijk van een staande vrouw 1875 - 1934

This is a drawing, 'Studie, mogelijk van een staande vrouw', by Isaac Israels, found in the Rijksmuseum. It’s all about the scribble, isn't it? The line goes for a walk, kind of like Klee. Israels is feeling his way around the form, capturing movement and gesture with this flurry of marks. Look at the upper left where those looping lines suggest the form of the figure. The graphite is dry and scratchy, and you can almost feel the artist's hand moving quickly across the page, searching for the right line. He's not trying to create a perfect representation, but rather, to capture the essence of the figure. It reminds me of some of the quick figure drawings of Willem de Kooning. Like de Kooning, Israels seems to embrace the messiness and imperfection of the process, allowing the energy of the moment to be preserved in the final work. And, as with any good drawing, there are so many possibilities here. It’s open to anything.