Studieblad met benen en een hoofd c. 1915s - 1925s

Isaac Israels made this study sheet with legs and a head, and, well, it looks like he made it with a pencil! The lightness of the marks suggests he was really just thinking through his pencil, letting the process guide his eye. There's a ghostly quality to the images, partly because Israels is so economical with his marks. Look at how he renders the knees, just a few quick lines to indicate the form, and then a bit more shading to give it depth. The head is even more abstract, a jumble of strokes that only vaguely suggests a face. For me, this kind of drawing is all about capturing the essence of a thing, not necessarily the thing itself. It puts me in mind of Picasso's sketches, you know? That same feeling of trying to grasp something essential with a few deft strokes. Like Picasso, Israels shows us that art isn't about perfection, it's about the ongoing exchange of ideas.