To Samson Schames, art is everything. When fleeing the Nazis lands him in an English internment camp for enemy aliens, he doesn’t let the squalid conditions curb his creativity—in fact, he thrives. Using the debris of destruction as material for his work, Samson cultivates an artistic vision that captures the horrors of war unlike any other. 

Learn more at www.lbi.org/schames.

Exile is a production of the Leo Baeck Institute, New York and Antica Productions.

It’s narrated by Mandy Patinkin. This episode was produced by Ilan Goodman.

Our executive Producers are Laura Regehr, Rami Tzabar, Stuart Coxe, and Bernie Blum. Our associate producer is Emily Morantz. Research and translation by Isabella Kempf. Voice acting by Ilan Goodman. Sound design and audio mix by Philip Wilson. Theme music by Oliver Wickham.

Special thanks to the Jewish Museum of Frankfurt.

This episode of Exile is made possible in part by a grant from the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany, which is supported by the German Federal Ministry of Finance and the Foundation Remembrance, Responsibility and Future.