Abklatsch van de krijttekening op blad 18 recto c. 1886 - 1934

This offset of a chalk drawing, made by Isaac Israels, feels like catching a fleeting thought on paper. The layered marks, a soft grey, hint at a process of building up an image, maybe wiping it away, and then starting again. You can imagine Israels with his sketchbook, quickly trying to capture something he saw. It feels so urgent! What was he thinking? Was he trying to get the overall composition first, or focusing on details? I’m sure there was a little frustration, a lot of focus. I love how the texture of the paper peeks through. It reminds me that drawing, like painting, is about more than just the image. It’s about the act of making, the physicality of the medium. The way the chalk sits on the page, the pressure of his hand—it all adds to the feeling of immediacy. It’s like a whisper from the past, connecting us to Israels and his way of seeing.