The Sumner Files, Episode Six: Cynthia Sobel

Cynthia Sobel, born Cynthia Schoenwetter, is Adam’s mother, and Sumner’s sister. So she knew Sumner from the very beginning of his life to the end, and there’s no one else alive who remembers the things about him that she does. She talks at length about their parents, Charles and Sylvia Schoenwetter, and their childhoods in Elmhurst, Queens — essential context for understanding Sumner’s life and art — as well as her memories and reflections about Sumner as an adult, and their relationship. One example: in 1963, Sumner took Cynthia and her husband (Adam’s dad, Gerry Sobel) to see Bob Dylan, whom they hadn’t heard of yet, perform in Carnegie Hall! Cynthia and Sumner both inherited artistic temperaments from their parents, and shared a passion particularly for the visual arts. (Their father, Charles, was a music teacher; Cynthia talks about how Charles didn’t succeed at teaching music to either Sumner or her, though Sumner learned it anyway, playing the piano like Jerry Lee Lewis, to their father’s dismay.) Cynthia had a long career as a designer of women’s suits, with her own line (name on the label) at Herbert Grossman. When she retired, she took up painting, connecting her to Sumner even more. You can find some of her older paintings on cynthiasobel.com, and some more recent ones on instagram where she’s @cynthia.sobel.5. This interview was recorded in September 2024.