Reclining Female Nude 1875 - 1934

Isaac Israels made this drawing of a Reclining Female Nude with confident marks, scratchy and full of speed. I see it hanging in the space between states, a thought captured on the way to becoming something else. There is an intense focus on the negative spaces of the body, so I wonder what it was like for Israels to try to capture the essence of this woman. The drawing feels intimate, like he was trying to get to know her through his art, maybe even falling in love with line itself. The arm, bent and reaching, is particularly evocative; it’s a simple gesture, but it carries a lot of weight. It reminds me of similar approaches used by other painters, like Degas, who were also interested in the beauty and complexity of the human form. Ultimately, this drawing feels like a part of an ongoing conversation between artists.