Duingezicht 1875 - 1934

Isaac Israels made this drawing, 'Duingezicht', with a graphite pencil. It’s a kind of quicksilver response to a landscape; a horizon line, a body of water and some kind of dramatic sky. You can almost feel him outside, struggling with the wind and the light. Look at the left-hand side, the soft scribbles of grey, trying to capture the feel of the thing. But it's on the right-hand side where it starts to take off – the dynamic hatching, the lines cutting across each other! Israels seems to be trying to find some clarity in the chaos. I can almost imagine him thinking, "How can I make this alive?" We’re lucky to have artists like Israels, who are in conversation with the world, with each other, and with us. They show us that beauty and meaning can be found even in the most fleeting moments.