Fans of James Bond, the superspy whom Hollywood gave a larger than life aura, are thrilled to be part of the 007 X Spyscape exhibition currently running in New York. This immersive exhibition is using projection mapping and larger than life installations to allow visitors to get up close and personal with the superspy and his world as represented on celluloid.
British journalist, author and naval intelligence officer Ian Fleming had created the fictional secret service agent &ndash famously designated as Agent 007 (pronounced as &lsquodouble-oh-seven&rsquo) &ndash for a series of spy novels, which were subsequently adapted for films as well as for television, radio, comic strip, and video games.
The exhibition is being held at Spyscape, a private, for-profit espionage museum and experience, which opened in 2018.
Displayed at the exhibition is Bond&rsquos actual Aston Martin DB5, the silver colour British luxury Grand Tourer, which is said to have first appeared in the Bond movie Goldfinger (1964). The car in the movie, with its range of gadgets, held viewers in such awe that it was also used in Thunderball, Golden Eye, Tomorrow Never Dies, Casino Royale, Skyfall and Spectre, with Sean Connery, Pierce Brosnan and Daniel Craig at the wheel at different times. Among the props on display is a scaled down version of the blackened and burned car from the movie Skyfall.
Apparently, Q as a character never appeared in Fleming&rsquos novels. Q was an abbreviation for Quartermaster, a designation of the person heading the Q Branch or the fictional research and development division of the secret service. However, Q makes an appearance in many of the Bond films, where conversations between Q and Bond add a humorous touch &ndash Q eager to show off the gadgets, Bond refusing to pay close attention. The exhibition has recreated Q&rsquos lab where visitors can look into the various gadgets.
Other attractions include getting behind the scenes on the film production set for the explosive finale of Skyfall &ndash scale model buildings that were built to be sacrificed in massive on-screen explosions explore original artworks in Oscar winner Sir Ken Adam's studio, never before seen images and animations, etc.
Spyscape is two blocks from MOMA (Museum of Modern Art) in midtown Manhattan, and conveniently located between Times Square and Central Park. Expect to spend 30-45 minutes, depending on your interest in the Bond exhibition. Tickets can be booked online.
