Vrouwenhoofd, in profiel 1875 - 1934

Isaac Israels made this head of a woman, in profile, with pencil on paper. It’s all about the immediacy of the mark here, the kind of quicksilver line that tells you Israels was really *looking*. The surface of the paper is allowed to breathe, with the lines giving us just enough information. I love the way he suggests the form of her hair with a kind of scribbled energy, those looping marks capturing the lightness and volume. The lines around her neck and shoulder are so sparse, almost like whispers. There’s a confidence in leaving things unsaid, trusting the viewer to fill in the blanks. It reminds me of Degas' drawings, that same interest in capturing fleeting moments and gestures. And like a conversation, art keeps evolving, each artist building on what came before. It’s never about having the final word but keeping the dialogue alive.