Staande vrouw met een kind op de arm c. 1886 - 1934

This drawing, made by Isaac Israels, captures a standing woman holding a child. What strikes me is the sponaneity of the marks; the artist's hand moving quickly to capture a fleeting moment. It feels like he is trying to keep up with a feeling, a sense of tenderness perhaps. I wonder about the relationship between the woman and child. Is it a mother and child, or an older sister? Israels focuses on the connection between them, how they are physically close to one another. You can see how the marks are concentrated around their heads and faces, almost obscuring their features. Think about how the artist is making a kind of record of a moment that is always changing. It's that sense of movement that gives it life, as if they are alive and breathing right there on the page. That's the magic of drawing.