Het standbeeld van Willem de Zwijger op het Noordeinde te 's-Gravenhage 1875 - 1934

Isaac Israels made this drawing of the statue of William the Silent in The Hague with pen and ink on paper. It's amazing how simple this drawing is and yet it conjures up so much, right? I can just picture Israels standing there, quickly capturing the monument with these energetic, gestural lines. He must have been thinking about how to convey the monumentality of the sculpture, but also the lively atmosphere of the city around it, all with just a few strokes. Look at how he suggests the form of the horse and rider with these loose, almost scribbled marks. The statue of William the Silent probably reminded Israels of how artists who came before him tackled similar challenges. And now here we are, years later, still looking at this drawing and thinking about what it means to capture a moment in time. It’s like we’re all part of this ongoing conversation, building on each other’s ideas and approaches to art-making.