Anyone visiting the Empire State Building on 34th Street in midtown Manhattan is immediately drawn to its immensity. The Art Deco landmark became the iconic symbol of New York City since its completion in 1931. It is indeed a captivating site from near and far, from within and without. Over the years, numerous displays would be exhibited as part of its gallery on the second and 80th floors, paying homage to its timeless, structural beauty and the engineering success represented in its architectural design. Among the museum displays is a copy of a panoramic, hand-sketched, achromatic drawing of the New York City skyline, including the renowned 34th Street edifice. One of the things that makes the drawing a remarkable art piece–besides the incredible detail of the city-scape structures–is that it is an image that was committed to memory after a 20-minute helicopter tour of the Big Apple.
The architectural artist Stephen Wiltshire is credited with the drawing. He completed the panoramic sketch work of the city in five days, a remarkable feat for an artist who is well known for reproducing images of cityscapes from around the world strictly from memory. What also makes him intriguing is that he is on the autism spectrum. His admirable artistic talent and photographic memory have earned him respect from artists, architects, and laypersons alike. Incidentally, his drawing skills remind me of another gentleman on the autism spectrum with an uncanny ability to commit to memory visuals of buildings that fascinate him, sometimes inspiring him to take a pencil to the sketchpad or a paint brush to canvas. This gentleman is my younger brother, John.
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