The Manufacturers Apologize to the People of China

Rose Wylie is one of seven finalists in this year's Threadneedle Prize for painting and sculpture.

Wylie was inspired to paint "The Manufacturers," (above) after seeing a photograph (top) on the front page of the New York Times from September 21, 2007, of Thomas A. Debrowski, a Mattel toy company executive, apologizing to Li Changjiang, China's product safety chief, after several mass recalls of unsafe and toxic toys made in China.

“It’s like a bank robber apologizing to his accomplice instead of to the person who was robbed,” Senator Charles E. Schumer, Democrat of New York, said at the time.

The Threadneedle Prize winner will be announced on Sept. 14th: anyone can go to the web site and vote for Wylie or one of the six other finalists. The prize is £25,000.