Figuurstudies 1875 - 1934

Isaac Israels made this drawing, Figuurstudies, with pencil and crayon on paper at an unknown date. It's a study in lavender and graphite, and the thing that grabs me is the way it looks like the artist is thinking out loud. There are figures sketched, erased, and re-sketched, with the lavender crayon adding a layer of energy, like electricity in the air. The physicality of the medium is clear. You can see the smudges, the varying pressure of the pencil, the waxy buildup of the crayon. Look at the faces especially. It's not about getting it "right," but about the trying. And it's precisely this ambiguity, this sense of searching, that makes the drawing so alive. Israels reminds me a little of Degas, in the sense that you can see the artist searching for the right way to represent a figure, or a pose, but it never feels labored or overworked. It's all process.