Vijf koppen van kinderen 1834 - 1911

Jozef Israëls made this sketch of five children's heads with a pencil on paper. Israëls was a key figure in the Hague School, a group of Dutch realist painters active in the latter half of the 19th century. The Hague School artists often turned to the lives of ordinary people for their subject matter, reflecting a broader interest in social realism that was emerging across Europe at the time. Israëls himself was particularly known for his paintings of working-class families and rural life, and this sketch seems to continue this theme. It would be interesting to know the class of these children: it seems they are wearing work uniforms. These quick sketches of children's faces are more than just studies of form, they hint at the lives and social conditions of the children themselves. To fully understand the context of this sketch, we might turn to the archives of the Rijksmuseum. This helps us understand the role of art in reflecting and shaping our understanding of society.