Figuurstudies 1875 - 1934

Isaac Israels made this drawing of figures, with pencil on paper, sometime in his life. It's all about the gesture, isn't it? The quickness of the hand trying to keep up with the moving world. Look at the left side, at the coat hanging there, how it's described with these confident, almost scribbled lines. There's a weight to them, a sense of the material, like you could reach out and touch the texture of the fabric. It’s so fast it's like the drawing barely exists. Israels reminds me a little of Degas, the way he captures the fleeting moments, the everyday scenes, but with a kind of intimacy. With the bare minimum he creates these characters. It's less about perfection and more about capturing the essence of a moment. Like a visual diary, with all its imperfections and immediacy. It's that directness that makes it so appealing, so alive.