Annotaties 1875 - 1934

This is a notebook page, "Annotaties," by Isaac Israels, and there's no date given. The surface is lined paper, and you can see how the ink bleeds a little into the fibers, which is a quality I love. It makes the marks feel immediate and unrehearsed. I'm drawn to the casual arrangement of words, like thoughts jotted down in the margins of life. The words themselves are like abstract shapes, tilting and leaning across the page. I can't read them, but I am curious to know what they mean. It reminds me of Cy Twombly’s scribbled notes, or even some of Basquiat’s word-based paintings. It's as though the act of writing is as important as the content, which speaks to the broader conversation about mark making and the poetry of everyday observation in art. It reminds us that art isn’t just about finished masterpieces; it’s about the process, the exploration, and the quiet moments of reflection captured in a simple notebook.