Staande vrouw c. 1886 - 1934

Isaac Israels made this work of a standing woman with pencil, the date is unknown. I like the way Israels gets right to it, laying down these loose, searching lines. It's all about process, you know? There's this restless energy in the marks, like he's trying to capture a fleeting moment, a feeling more than a fixed image. Look at how the lines build up around her face and hair, creating depth and shadow with such simple means. You can almost feel the movement, as though the woman herself is about to shift or turn away. It reminds me a bit of Degas' drawings – that same sense of capturing a figure in motion, not posed or static. Both artists embrace the beauty of the unfinished, the sketch as a complete statement. It's about the artist's eye, his touch, and the immediacy of the moment.