Commander James Bond KCMG, DSO, OBE, RNVR, (Ret.)
In which we find that the rumours of Bond’s demise at the hands of Blofeld and Irma Bunt were greatly exaggerated. M’s obit for Bond in The Times of London revealed his early history as a student at Eton and Fettes Colleges, his wartime career, and his service to the Crown - albeit classified - in the Ministry of Defense. Bond’s exploits were chronicled by foreign media, and a “series of popular books came to be written about him by a personal friend.” Back in his flat off the King’s Road, Bond’s mementos of his deadly career, as well as the novels, are proudly displayed on his library shelves. As M wrote, “if the quality of these books, or their degree of veracity, had been any higher, the author would certainly have been prosecuted under the Official Secrets Act.” It is a testament to Bond’s career that even to this day other writers have picked up the baton to enthrall the public with tales of Bond’s chosen profession: a secret agent with the license to kill.
Painting size: 13.5" w x 16.125" h
Original Painting: $4,500.00 framed in gun-metal gray with museum quality mat and plexiglass
Limited Edition Giclée print $75.00 on 110 lb Arches Watercolour paper
Painting copyright by the artist 2019
OFFICIAL SECRETS: The Backstory
For “Official Secrets” I was motivated by the Obit in The Times (of London) that appears at the end of You Only Live Twice, written by M about the presumed death of Bond at the hands of Blofeld (Dr. Shatterhand) and Irma Bunt. As my narrative describes, M recounts Bond’s early history as a youth, his time (very scandalous and short) at Eton, and his subsequent days at Fettes College. The self-twitting irony of Fleming is evident when M writes about the popularization of Bond’s exploits by a personal friend and how these stories were almost in violation of the Official Secrets Act - hence the name of the painting. I have continued the contemporization of Bond with his collection of first edition Fleming novels that Bond would have undoubtedly acquired, the recent Bond continuation novel by Anthony Horowitz - Trigger Mortis, a bookmark from Artistic Licence Renewed and other elements that Bond has on hand in his flat.
Incidental Intel
To continue theme of the contemporary nature of Official Secrets, I followed clues from The Times Obit, added objects that Bond might have collected, as well as those mentioned in numerous novels - most of which need little explanation, ubiquitous as they are. Hence the Haig & Haig, Ben Hogan golf clubs, the Calamity Jane putter, Leica M3 camera, and the Lugar pistol, to mention a few. Some exceptions do occur. Blofeld’s samurai sword, for example, has the SPECTRE mon at the top of the handle. Unspecified “protection” was mentioned in The Spy Who Loved Me, so it was either Forex or Trojan condoms…
I liked the colors of the Trojans best. The room key given to Bond in Risico was from the actual Hotel (Albergo) Danieli. Readers will remember the two cards Solitaire held face to face to show Bond she was on his side - so a portrait of her was required. The Chopping Fly is always my last image to add, so it appears on the edge of the shelf.