The story

Signed lower left ‘Isaac Israels’

Israels held a lifelong fascination for the human figure. Although he earned his greatest fame with paintings of crowded streets, dance halls and elegant ladies strolling in a park, Israels also tackled the classical subject of the female nude. He shared this interest with his colleague and friend George Hendrik Breitner, as A.M. Hammacher remarks in his book ‘Amsterdamsche impressionisten en hun kring’ (1941). Israels’ nudes are more intimate in character and differ significantly from the crudely rendered, dramatic nudes of his friend Breitner. Hammacher praises the wonderful light and delicate charm of Israels' female nudes, that are completely without false sentimentality and brazen sensuality.

This painting is one of the most attractive nudes Israels painted. The subtle, glowing light, the beautifully rendered female figure and spontaneous, virtuoso brushwork betray a painter of proficient talent.

Provenance: Kunsthandel M.L. de Boer, Amsterdam, ca. 1956, inv.no. 3724.

Literature: A. Wagner, Isaac Israels, Venlo 1985, p. 149.