t was a top-secret mission he couldn't refuse. Painter James Hart Dyke was assigned to shadow spooks for a year, sketchbook in hand. What did he learn about their mysterious world?
More at A Year with MI6
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| Dog Walker 2010, oil on canvas. The most everyday activities, such as walking a dog, can be used as a way of meeting a contact without attracting suspicion |
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| The Headquarters, Vauxhall Cross, London 2011, oil on canvas. The SIS HQ, on the south side of the Thames, beside Vauxhall Bridge, is one of London's most paradoxical buildings: well-known from the outside, a mystery within. Since it opened in 1994 it has become a landmark on the capital's skyline, but access to its interior is highly restricted |
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| Waiting in the Hotel Room 2010, pencil, watercolour and charcoal on paper. Spies spend long hours working, waiting for contacts and waiting for calls. 'There's a lot of hanging around,' says Hart Dyke. 'You're in a completely ordinary place, waiting for something quite extraordinary to happen... and often waiting for a long time.' |
Brits,(shaking head)... super double secret art, carefully vetted to make sure they mean absolutely nothing to anyone outside the inner circle.
ReplyDeleteI'm a lot like a spy. I'm in a completely ordinary place, waiting for something quite extraordinary to happen... and often waiting for a long time.
ReplyDeleteYou should be painted!
ReplyDeleteOr tarred and feathered :-)
ReplyDeleteI've been meaning of featuring this since you posted it. Seemed exactly right with the news today.
ReplyDeletehttp://dreamdogsart.typepad.com/art/2011/05/james-hart-dyke-dog-walker-spy-painting.html