Twee dansende vrouwen c. 1886 - 1934

Isaac Israels made this drawing of two dancing women with what looks like charcoal or soft graphite, somewhere around the turn of the century. The marks are so loose, like he was trying to capture a feeling more than a form. It’s like a whisper of a memory of a dance. The smudgy shading on the left page is so vague it's almost a ghost image. On the right, the bold, dark strokes defining the dancer's jacket contrast with the delicate, looping lines of their skirts, making you wonder about the interplay of strength and grace. The whole thing has a quality of being provisional, a sketch that feels more alive than a finished portrait. It reminds me of Degas, who also sought to capture the fleeting movements of dancers, but Israels has a more direct, raw quality. He seems less concerned with perfection, and more interested in the messy, beautiful process of trying to capture life on paper.