NARRATIVE: The film "Schindler‘s List" is a masterpiece. Out of all the movies American film maker Steven Spielberg has made, this one is the pinnacle of his abilities. Each scene is a masterpiece of composition, design, lighting and staging, so when I saw the props from the movie as part of Glenn's artifact collection for inspiration to create art for this show, I jumped on the opportunity immediately.

Every time I watch "Schindler’s List," I marvel at every scene, especially the lighting. Each scene is off the charts, artistically speaking. That’s why I chose to draw this scene, the moment Schindler and his partner, Itzhak Stern, toast the finalized list. Light and dark are both working to tell the story in silhouette. Liam Neeson is a large and looming figure and across the table in the distance is Ben Kingsley, small and feeble, but incredibly smart and organized.

There was no preliminary sketching involved in this image. No pencil drawing to establish the image, just jumping in with archival Pentel pens #3 and #5. The paper is Epson Premium Heavyweight Presentation Stock and the amazing thing about this paper is it allows for scratching away the top layer due to its special coating. It’s my “secret ingredient”. The paper also does not allow for erasing so my marks have to count.

I started with Liam Neeson first and designed his head down onto his collar with “wonk” and “pushing shapes," and exaggeration of his body. Then I worked my way over to Ben Kingsley, who had to be "fit into the drawing" before I got into the end of the page. The ink approach was heavily inspired by my studies of artist Anders Zorn whom, I think, is one of the greatest artists that ever lived.

Thank you, Mr. Spielberg, for using your genius to tell this incredible story. My drawing is a tribute to those who lost their lives in WWII, but also a tribute to the beauty of art and design in telling this story.