By Gerald Wadsworth Today marks the anniversary of Ian Fleming’s The Man with the Golden Gun, in which we find Bond on an assignment to the Caribbean to locate and eliminate Francisco (Paco) “Pistols” Scaramanga – a freelance assassin for Castro. “What to paint?”… This artistic conundrum happens a lot with Bond… even after five…
To round off the year that was 2020, Gerald Wadsworth brings some colour to our lives in his latest homage to James Bond! A writer is always looking for some literary device to give their characters their own “voice” as well as an identity that will differentiate them from the other characters in the book.…
This month Gerry Wadsworth dove into the short story Octopussy looking for treasure… Put yourselves in the shoes of Major Dexter Smythe, Royal Marines (Retired).… You’re living the life of luxury off stolen Nazi WW2 gold bars by selling bits of them to Chinese import/export merchants. You live on the island of Jamaica in a…
The dust jackets of the first three James Bond novels are well known to any serious first edition collector. Their seminal influence and value are most talked about, but less well known is the man behind the artwork, Kenneth Lewis. Someone who knew the late Lewis well is rare book dealer and long-time Ian Fleming…
This week, courtesy of the paintbrush of Gerald Wadsworth is the lesser know Ian Fleming short story “Risico”, from Ian Fleming’s short story collection For Your Eyes Only. An escape to Venice sounds ideal right now! The Inspirations In creating imagery for this painting, it seemed logical that a Venice canal scene should dominate the painting.…
Gerald Wadsworth returns in… On Her Majesty’s Secret Service! The Inspirations Inspiration for a painting can come from one of those inexplicable and unexpected parts of Fleming’s writing. Normally, we race through a story, relishing the action and adventure, the seduction and rejections, the wealth of detail surrounding our favorite spy, and invariably, we find…
Article by Graham M. Thomas According to Robert Harling, the main topic of conversation when he first met Ian Fleming at a party in 1939 was typography; Fleming mentioned that he subscribed to Typography, a magazine that Harling edited. ‘I’ve been a subscriber to your magazine with its singular title from its very first number,’…
We are delighted to showcase the latest work by Gerry Wadsworth. Gerry has produced a triptych of Bond paintings, that will be sure to cement his legacy. Here Gerry talks about his process and inspirations. ‘The idea of a triptych came to me as I was completing “A Deadly Career.” I have always appreciated Japanese woodblock prints…
Artistic Licence Renewed is delighted to help unveil Gerald Wadsworth’s latest James Bond painting, “A Deadly Career”. The painting recorded Bond’s life as a spy & assassin for Her Majesty’s Government. Matt Sherman of the Bond Fan Events site tells us more. Last year, the International Spy Museum in Washington DC commissioned Gerry to provide…
After a period out in the cold, we welcome Gerry Wadsworth back in with his latest creation: an homage to Ian Fleming’s Cold War James Bond short story – The Living Daylights. The Backstory With a nod to master Bond book illustrator, Richard Chopping – a Green Bottle fly perches on the label of a…
Here is something to brighten up your day. Gerry Wadsworth is back with a striking homage to Dr. No! The Back Story After reading Dr. No several times, I realized that there was no way I could paint anything that would compete with the scene in the movie where a gorgeous Ursula Andress rises from…
Continuing with the 60th anniversary celebrations of ‘Diamonds are Forever’, we bring you the latest offering to the Bond temple with Gerry Wadsworth‘s homage to the great novel. The Inspiration Iconic Ian Lancaster Fleming at his best, Diamonds are Forever is one of those stories that suck you into the pages of the book and…
Comrade Wadsworth has done it again and we are thrilled to present Gerry’s homage to From Russia, With Love. We’re spoiling you! The Inspiration When actress and singer, Lotte Lenya, was asked about her nearly 60 year career in theatre and film, she confessed that the character of “Rosa Klebb” in the 1963 film “From Russia…
![Moonraker: "Disinformation Served…Coffee and a Cover-up" [Painting by Gerry Wadsworth] ...in which we find Bond back in London after a hair-raising escape from ex-Nazi Hugo Drax. Bond, with the help of agent Gala Brand, recalibrates the guidance system of the rocket, Moonraker (and its nuclear payload) back to its original coordinates and away from London. The two agents successfully foil Draxs’ plans for the destruction of the City. Draxs’ attempt to escape in a Russian submarine proves disastrous for him, his 50 ex-Nazi Werewolf assistants, and the Russian crew. The rocket crash lands at the recovery site and blows up the sub as it passes under the target zone. Whitehall then goes into full damage control and spins the death of "National Hero" and "Great Patriot" Hugo Drax as a tragic loss to the nation. The PM convinces the Press to publish Whitehall's version of the truth and they comply. M tells Bond that the government is "going to try the biggest cover-up in history." Back at his Chelsea flat, Bond enjoys his favorite meal of the day - breakfast - and reads the government's disinformation campaign on the Moonraker disaster in the only paper he ever reads...The Times.](https://literary007.files.wordpress.com/2016/01/moonraker-rgb.jpeg?w=220&h=126&crop=1)
We are delighted once again, to unveil Gerry Wadsworth latest creation! Here in his own words, Gerry discusses the creative process behind his tribute to Moonraker. One of the many joys of the creative process and working with the Bond stories is the “what if” opportunities the character offers us. We can imagine some event…
This month The Folio Society, in conjunction with Ian Fleming publications, release a lavish edition of Ian Fleming’s classic début novel ‘Casino Royale‘. The beautiful artwork was commissioned for acclaimed illustrator Fay Dalton with an introduction by Booker-Prize winning author John Banville. Another must-have item for devoted literary James Bond collectors! We spoke with Sheri Gee, the…
With the kind of work rate that Anthony Horowitz would be proud of, we are proud to publish an exclusive look at Gerry Wadsworth latest James Bond inspired piece – Trigger Mortis! First, let me state unequivocably, that I loved Trigger Mortis. In fact, I couldn’t put it down and read it in one go. Not…
In conjunction with the suitably named New Bond Street Pawnbrokers, who specialise in brokering luxury assets, we have culled some of the top brands from Ian Fleming’s James Bond novels in a handy infographic!
Gerald Wadsworth is back! This time he’s taken on Ian Fleming’s thrilling short story ‘From A View To A Kill’. Here Gerry explains why: The short story was filled with so many possible visual interpretations that I was determined to find a unique nuanced element that would give me something that wouldn’t turn into a…
We are proud to present Gerald Wadsworth‘s latest James Bond inspired work, The Hildebrand Rarity … …in which Bond helps his friend, Fidele Barbey, pilot a yacht to the Seychelle Islands, for business tycoon Milton Krest. Krest is determined to kill, capture, or buy as many rare species from the Island that he can and sell them to the Smithsonian. Arrogant…
Since 2010, Gerry Wadsworth has been painting in watercolor and for the past two years has been working on “An Homage to James Bond” – a series of visual interpretations of books of Ian Fleming and the James Bond films. We welcome him in from the cold to answer to debrief. What ignited your passion…
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