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Lot Essay
Isaac Israels is the painter of modern life at the fin-de-siècle in The Netherlands. Around 1900 his fascination with bustling nightlife extended to the fashionable and elegant world of Haute Couture, when his childhood friend and painter Thérèse Schwartze (1851-1918) introduced him at the Amsterdam fashion house of Hirsch, which opened at the Leidseplein in 1881 and was one of the leading fashion establishments by the turn of the century. Via his connections here, Israels was then introduced to Parisian fashion houses such as Drécoll on the Place de l'Opéra and Paquin in the Rue de la Paix several years later when he moved to the French capital in 1904. Israels was allowed to go behind the scenes and thus his interest was not only focussed on the wealthy customers of the sewing ateliers, but also on the hardworking seamstresses. Instead of glamorous images of high fashion, he mainly produced stubbornly naturalistic depictions of the reality. Like his father Jozef Israels (1824-1911), one of the founders of The Hague School, who ideally depicted his indoor scenes in grey and brown tones, Isaac was very careful with the use of colour in this genre. The backgrounds of his paintings are often dark and the dresses and coats of the depicted mannequins contrast only in a few exceptional cases, like in the present lot. The painter often reserved colours for details; to accentuate pursed lips or blushing cheeks.
The present lot shows the twin sisters Ippy (1895-1964) and Gertie (1895-1975) Wehmann, posing in front of a sand-coloured wall, probably in 1916. The girls modeled for Hirsch in the period between 1916 and 1918 and frequently appeared in articles on the fashion house. In these years Israels painted Ippy and Gertie various times and often together as in the present lot. With fluid, dynamic brushstrokes Israels depicted the models standing close together, with their faces turned towards each other. It seems if the sisters were having a secret conversation. The contrast of the intensely black and scalding pink of their dresses illustrates Israels' high-key colours, normally used in his outdoor scenes, far removed from the muted palette he was so fond of using in his portraits.
The present lot shows the twin sisters Ippy (1895-1964) and Gertie (1895-1975) Wehmann, posing in front of a sand-coloured wall, probably in 1916. The girls modeled for Hirsch in the period between 1916 and 1918 and frequently appeared in articles on the fashion house. In these years Israels painted Ippy and Gertie various times and often together as in the present lot. With fluid, dynamic brushstrokes Israels depicted the models standing close together, with their faces turned towards each other. It seems if the sisters were having a secret conversation. The contrast of the intensely black and scalding pink of their dresses illustrates Israels' high-key colours, normally used in his outdoor scenes, far removed from the muted palette he was so fond of using in his portraits.