Painting VI 1916

Morton Schamberg made Painting VI with oil paint and a real knack for balancing mechanical form with playful abstraction. The cool palette, mostly greys and blues, gives it a kind of industrial, almost futuristic feel, but the way Schamberg lets the brushstrokes show through keeps it human. Take a look at that big white disc up top—it’s solid, but the edges are soft, almost fuzzy, like it’s dissolving into the atmosphere. That’s where the painting sings, in the tension between the hard-edged geometry and the fluidity of the paint. I feel like I can see Schamberg thinking through the act of painting itself, making decisions, changing his mind, leaving traces of the process right there on the canvas. It puts me in mind of Francis Picabia, another artist who wasn't afraid to mix machines and something more organic. Ultimately, these paintings remind us that art isn’t about answers; it’s about the questions we ask along the way.