Orkest in een theater c. 1930 - 1934

Isaac Israels made this drawing of an orchestra in a theatre sometime in his life with pencil on paper. You know, sketching can feel like thinking out loud, and Israels really captures that sense here. It's all about the energy of the moment, that feeling when something's happening right in front of you and you just have to grab it. Look at how he's used the pencil, those quick, scribbly lines, layering them up to create depth and shadow. The musicians almost dissolve into the background, becoming part of the atmosphere. There’s this one spot, right in the middle, where the lines get really dense, like he's trying to capture the loudest part of the music. It reminds me a little of Daumier, that sense of capturing everyday life with all its grit and energy. It's not about perfection, it's about feeling, about capturing a moment in time and all the messy, beautiful stuff that comes with it.