Vrouw met gesloten ogen 1875 - 1934

Isaac Israels made this drawing of a woman with closed eyes, probably in his studio, with graphite on paper. You can see the artist feeling around for the form. There's a real sense of movement, as if he's trying to capture something fleeting. Looking at the heavy marks around the head, I imagine Israels working quickly, trying to capture the essence of his sitter. The drawing feels both intimate and immediate. I can almost feel the weight of the graphite in his hand, the scratching on the page. There’s a quiet intensity in those dark lines, capturing the delicate balance between presence and absence that defines a resting face. Israels and other artists are constantly in conversation, inspiring each other across time. This drawing embodies that exchange, a quiet moment captured with bold strokes. It embraces ambiguity, inviting us to bring our own interpretations to the work, finding new meanings each time we return to it.