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23 June 2026

Isaac Israels’ Europe: Five Works That Capture a Continent in Motion

Planning a summer visit that blends art, travel, and history? Step into Isaac Israels’ Europe and experience a continent in motion through the eyes of a tireless traveler and acute observer. On view from 24 April to 30 August 2026, this exhibition reveals how Israels rapidly captured impressions across European cities, coasts, and cultural crossroads—first in sketchbooks and on paper, then as vibrant paintings that still feel alive today.

In this guide, you’ll discover what the exhibition offers, how Israels worked on the move, and five standout works that embody the restless energy of Europe in the early 20th century. You’ll also find practical tips for planning your visit, opportunities to deepen your experience, and quick answers to common questions.

What is Isaac Israels’ Europe?

Isaac Israels’ Europe (24 April 2026 – 30 August 2026) traces the journeys of the Dutch artist (1865–1934), who traveled for almost his entire life—beginning with a first tour by train at age 13 in 1877. He stayed briefly in many places, such as Germany, Italy, Austria, Spain, Denmark, and Sweden, with longer residencies in Paris (1904–1913) and London (1913–1915). Even during the First World War, he continued to travel using a laissez-passer, astonishing friends who wondered whether he realized there was a war on.

Inside the galleries, you’ll see how Israels captured swift impressions in sketchbooks and on paper, then elaborated them into canvases alive with movement. The exhibition explores themes including his knowledge of European literature, travel and migration in the first half of the 20th century, and the status of the migrant—especially in wartime.

Highlights include:

Five works that capture a continent in motion

Below are five works featured in the exhibition that reveal how Israels turned travel into art—each an image of Europe on the move, from coasts and rivers to city streets and café culture.

1) The Bern Waitress (1915)

A memorable snapshot of service, speed, and city life, Isaac Israels, The Bern Waitress, 1915 distills movement into a single figure at work. It resonates with the exhibition’s broader attention to travel, labor, and shifting social roles in turbulent times. The year underscores Israels’s remarkable mobility during the First World War, when he continued to travel with a temporary document.

What to look for:

2) Watercolour cityscape with river and bridge

This atmospheric watercolour of a cityscape with trees in the foreground and a river with a bridge demonstrates Israels’s gift for building mood through soft, muted colour and blurred outlines. A few figures along the riverbank hint at lives in transit—crossing, pausing, watching the flow.

What to look for:

3) Watercolour beach scene with parasols and three figures

A watercolour painting of a beach, with parasols and three people in the sand captures leisure as a distinctly modern kind of motion—people gathering, resting, and socializing along new rail-linked coasts. Israels’s swift technique keeps the scene light on its feet, almost windblown.

What to look for:

4) Painting depicting a female figure in traditional Spanish clothing

This painting of a female figure in traditional Spanish clothing celebrates cultural identity within a pan-European journey. Israels’s travels ranged widely—from Scandinavia to Southern Europe—and here attire becomes a narrative: a portrait that also reads as a map of customs and place.

What to look for:

5) A woman standing in a boat, holding a stick

Rendered in light grey and brown tones, this painting of a woman standing in a boat, holding a stick evokes quiet movement across water. It distills travel to its essentials: balance, direction, and the steady push forward.

What to look for:

How Israels turned travel into art—fast

Israels’s life was defined by art, literature, and travel. From early train journeys with his family in 1877 to extended stays in Paris and London, he learned languages and read widely—knowledge that fed his observational powers. In practice, he worked quickly:

This nimble process helps explain why his works feel immediate. It also clarifies why the exhibition includes not only paintings but watercolours, pastels, chalk drawings, and many sketchbooks—the full arc from fleeting note to finished canvas.

Importantly, the exhibition addresses traveling and migrating through Europe in the first half of the 20th century and the status of the migrant, especially in wartime. Seeing these themes alongside Israels’s agile technique adds historical depth to the sense of motion his art conveys.

Quick answers

Also on view

Round out your visit with these exhibitions:

And looking ahead:

Practical tips for your visit

Make the most of Isaac Israels’ Europe with these quick takeaways:

  1. Start with the sketchbooks. They reveal how Israels’s fast observations evolve into finished paintings.
  2. Compare media. Notice differences in touch and atmosphere across watercolour, pastel, chalk drawing, and oil.
  3. Trace the journeys. From Scandinavia to Southern Europe, look for hints of place in clothing, light, and activity.
  4. Consider context. Exhibition texts address travel, wartime movement, and the status of migrants—keep these themes in mind as you look.
  5. Enter the giveaway. Sign up at the exit for a chance to win a European trip (check terms and conditions on-site).
  6. Join the workshop. Try the Workshop: tekenreis met Isaac Israels on selected Saturdays between 24 April and 29 August.
  7. Plan essentials. Check Tickets and prices, Opening hours, the Calendar, Maps, and Address, route and parking.
  8. Accessibility and amenities. Review Accessibility and Food and drinks options before you arrive.
  9. Make it a full day. Combine art and nature by planning time in De Hoge Veluwe National Park.

Conclusion: See Europe move—on paper and canvas

Isaac Israels’ Europe brings together rapid sketches, resonant paintings, and timely themes of travel and migration to show a continent in motion. Whether you’re drawn to rivers and bridges, seaside scenes, or city life, these five works offer a compelling route through the exhibition—and through the stories that shaped modern Europe.

Ready to go? Buy your tickets, check Opening hours, explore the Calendar, and plan your visit. While you’re here, consider the Workshop: tekenreis met Isaac Israels, and don’t forget to sign up for the giveaway at the exit.