Vrouwenhoofd, in profiel 1875 - 1934

This is a quick sketch in pencil by Isaac Israels. The woman's head is tilted back. You can see how he’s built the form with these searching, scratchy lines, right? I imagine Israels working fast, capturing something fleeting. He’s focusing on the play of light and shadow on her face, but the negative space is also as important. Those loose lines around her head—they aren’t just filling space, they suggest movement and atmosphere. It’s like he’s mapping out the energy around her. I think of other artists, like Degas, who were also obsessed with capturing the everyday, the informal. It’s about seeing beauty in the ordinary, and I think Israels really nails that here. He’s not trying to create a perfect likeness; he's trying to capture a feeling, a moment in time. And it’s that sense of immediacy that makes this sketch so alive. Artists are always looking, borrowing, stealing ideas from each other across time. It’s all one big conversation, really.