Saul
1899
Medium
oil on canvas
Dimensions
0; 60; 3; 80
About this artwork
Saul liggend op een bank, met de rechterhand op het voorhoofd. Uit een reeks van vijf studies voor een schilderij van Saul en David uit 1899 (zie ook SK-A-3731, SK-A-4180, SK- A-4198 en SK-A-3732).
Art Historical Context
In the hushed galleries of the Rijksmuseum, Jozef Israëls' *Saul* (1899) offers a poignant glimpse into the artist's late-career exploration of biblical narratives. Israëls, a leading figure of the Dutch Hague School, was renowned for his realistic depictions of everyday life infused with emotional depth and subtle atmospheric effects. By the 1890s, he turned to grand historical and religious subjects, drawing from the Old Testament story of King Saul, tormented by melancholy and divine disfavor, as recounted in 1 Samuel. This oil on canvas study (60 × 80 cm) captures Saul in a moment of prof...
About the Artist
Jozef Israëls · 1824–1911
Israëls was born in Groningen to poor Jewish parents. He trained as an artist in Groningen and Amsterdam, and between 1845 and 1855, he expanded his training by travelling to Paris, Dusseldorf, and the artist's colony at Oosterbeek. However, the most influential locations he visited were the Dutch seaside towns of Zandvoort and Katwijk, were he adopted genre painting as a means of documenting the ...