Original Painting: a Fools Wisdom by James Edward Scherbarth

Smoky gray, with stray handwriting in white and black that never quite becomes words.

This original painting, A Fools Wisdom, is by James Edward Scherbarth (1949-2021), dated 2013, in oil and cold wax on cradle board, signed and dated en verso. Script-like marks have long been part of abstract painting's vocabulary, suggesting writing without committing to any particular message. Layers of charcoal and slate gray cover the panel, rubbed and scraped to reveal lighter patches beneath. In the lower half, loops of white and lilac line meet a short row of black dashes. Hints of rust red and blue surface near the bottom. It is 12 inches wide and 12 high.

Wisdom in a language the fool kept to himself.