Vrouwenhoofd 1875 - 1934

Isaac Israels made this drawing, Vrouwenhoofd, with a graphic medium on paper. It's like a whisper of a drawing, isn't it? A fleeting thought captured with the lightest touch. The charcoal, or whatever he used, barely kisses the surface. It's all suggestion and atmosphere. I love how the head emerges from this haze of lines, as if being conjured from a dream. The lines feel tentative, searching, like the artist is thinking through the form as he draws it. There are areas where he returns, again and again, building up the tone and density of the mark making. Look at the delicate scumble of the mark making around the head, like smoke. Does that relate to the head, or the world around her? It's a reminder that art is not about perfect representation but about the messy, beautiful process of seeing and feeling. Think about artists like Cy Twombly, and the poetry of their line. There's a freedom here, an embrace of imperfection that I find so appealing.