Schetsboek LXX met 17 bladen c. 1886 - 1934

This is Isaac Israels’ sketchbook from around the turn of the last century. It’s a modest object, 17 pages bound together. I imagine Israels carrying this with him everywhere; on trains, in cafes, to the beach. The cover has this amazing marbled effect. It looks like a galaxy of tiny white stars suspended in blackness. Or maybe when you look closer, it’s like a microscopic view of cells, the building blocks of life. I wonder what he was thinking when he chose this particular sketchbook? Did the cover somehow mirror his own creative process? The way ideas emerge, almost randomly at first, like constellations forming in the dark? As a painter, I love seeing how other artists gather their thoughts. A sketchbook is a very intimate thing. It's a place where you can be free, experiment, and make mistakes. It's a dialogue with yourself and also with the world around you. It's a reminder that art is an ongoing conversation, each artist building on the work of those who came before.