Vrouwenhoofd, in profiel 1875 - 1934

Isaac Israels made this sketch of a woman’s head in profile using graphite on paper. You know, looking at this, I feel like he must have been sitting somewhere, maybe in a café, just doodling in a sketchbook while people-watching. I can almost see him there, quickly capturing the essence of this woman with these fleeting, almost scribbled lines. Look at the way he's suggested the curls of her hair – it’s so lively! And the shading on her headscarf, or hat – it feels both casual and deliberate, all at once. It makes me think about all the ways artists use drawing, not just as a study for something else, but as a way of thinking, of seeing. It’s like a dance between the eye and the hand, capturing a moment, a feeling, an idea. And isn't that the point, after all? Artists showing us how they see the world.