Vrouw met hoed op de rand van een balkon 1887 - 1934

Isaac Israels made this drawing of a woman with a hat on the edge of a balcony with graphite on paper. You can really sense the energy of the artist in the way he's worked. It's like he's trying to capture a feeling as much as a likeness. The texture is lovely. It's all rough and immediate, the marks are out in the open for everyone to see. Look how the lines build up the hat and clothing, layer upon layer, a bit like a drypoint print. The face is almost incidental, but that's okay, it's like Israels is telling us that the sitter is an idea rather than a person. I am reminded of the drawings of Paula Modersohn-Becker, who also used economical lines to create bold images, and like her, Israels reminds us that art is a conversation, an ongoing exploration rather than a set of answers. It's okay to leave things open, to embrace the ambiguity.