Toeschouwers op een theaterbalkon c. 1915s - 1925s

Isaac Israels made this quick sketch of "Spectators in a theater balcony" probably in a sketchbook, and I love the way it captures a moment, a fleeting impression. Israels is not trying to capture detail here, instead he works with a kind of shorthand, a visual memo. Look at how he uses the side of the pencil to block in shadow, then scratches back over it with a sharper point to suggest form. There is something so direct and honest about this way of working, it feels like the artist is thinking on the page, right in front of us. The backs of the figures are dark masses, but the stage is just a flurry of lines – like trying to remember a dream. This little sketch feels like a conversation with Degas, or maybe Manet. Artists looking at other artists, stealing ideas, and trying to find new ways of seeing. It’s a reminder that art is never finished, but always changing, always in process.