I had the great honor of being commissioned by the Robert I. Schattner Foundation, to create a collage painting of the late Doctor Robert I. Schattner. From humble beginnings, Dr. Schattner went on to invent, and sell, Chloraseptic. From there, he carefully charted stocks, and steadily built a portfolio that ultimately made him a 51% shareholder of Hancock, and one of the wealthiest people in Washington. Today, the University of Pennsylvania’s Dental School bears his name.

Dr. Schattner’s journey is explored in this painting.

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Here is the entire creative process, distilled into 50 seconds. Now, let’s take a close look at the man whose world was guided by serendipity.

The first phase of a collage painting commission involves sourcing an image for the overall composition. Simultaneously, I will send a series of questions about the subject. The chosen composition serves as the foundation, and those answers help us choose collage elements to tell the story.

In the case of Dr. Schattner, here is a breakdown of the meaning behind each headline:

DOTY: A nod to Dr. Schattner’s “Dentist Of The Year” win in 1984.

Hope: In reference to Project Hope, and Dr. Schattner’s donation of Chloraseptic to service underprivileged communities in South America. Also, a nod toward his efforts in employing folks with disabilities.

Serendipity: A powerful word and belief in Dr. Schattner’s world.

Bronx: Place of birth.

Tennis: Favorite game to play.

Sinatra: Favorite musician.

Redskins: Favorite Team (season ticket holder); once tried to purchase the franchise.

Isaac: Dr. Schattner’s given name, which he changed to Robert around 1948… (Note: I have a penchant for this detail, as I paint under a different name.)

Drum: In close proximity to Isaac, as he played drums in the Catskills under the name Isaac.

91: The number of years Dr. Schattner lived.

LUCK: “I can attribute my success,” Dr. Schattner said in 2015, “to a combination of serendipity, luck, and perseverance.”

CCNY: Dr. Schattner was proud of his undergraduate degree at the Community College of New York.

JPDS: Jewish Primary Day School — Dr. Schattner was a major benefactor of this institution.

Sly Fox: As part of the questioning exercise, I asked which animal is Dr. Schattner most like — this answer felt like a perfect fit.

Generous: An important quality trait of Dr. Schattner.

Intuitive: An important descriptive… through serendipity and intuition, Dr. Schattner managed to pivot at several points of his career to discover another level.

Modest: This is also important… Dr. Schattner’s modesty is important to call out.

UPENN: Shout to Dr. Schattner’s college, and School of Dental Medicine.

Now, with the collage elements in place, it was time to bang out the under painting — red and orange. As you will notice in the collaged images in Dr. Schattner’s jacket… he was a major fan of playing the drums. That was one of his great passions over the years. His beloved wife, Kay, is collaged directly over his heart. And, as captured in this beautiful Washington Post tribute, Dr. Schattner was not only a student, inventor, investor and humanitarian — he was also a major fan of Country Kitchen Buffet.

Here, the process of creating a likeness begins — the shadows are a perfect place to start.

Capturing the accurate tones in the background was critical. We went with a gradient, with Pantone  Blue – 308C up top, and Green – 356C on the bottom. These are the Foundation colors, which were inspired by Chloraseptic’s iconic branding. Another detail you might notice in the collar — one of Dr. Schattner’s charts, he used to keep track of stocks. His strategy of buying shares in a variety of banks paid off in a major way, when after a series of mergers, he found himself a majority shareholder of Hancock.

Now we are working tone-by-tone to sculpt the portrait.

This was an exciting point in the process… the likeness has been captured, the face is there… all that remains are the hair, and fine-tuning details (eyes, highlights, etc.)

I want to thank Sid and Phyllis Bresler; and Maureen and Robert Sievers for this incredible opportunity. Your love, passion and dedication to this great man helped guide our painting each step of the way. May our collaboration serve as a beautiful reminder of Dr. Schattner.

And, before I go, a shot of Dr. Schattner’s painting on the wall, for context.