Mata Hari
This is my first piece in my 'Femmes Fatales' series that I am working on alongside my paintings. Please check out my shop for more pictures and details on the necklace.
Notice the contrast between these photos. In her spy portrait she lacks all the drama and glamour of her seducing portraits. They seem to be two different people.
I've been using these photos for reference on the painting of her that I am currently working on. It will show her as a pair of conjoined twins, illustrating the full extent of leading a double life.
Mata Hair was an exotic dancer and courtesan that lived during the early 1900's. As if her life as a seductress of many rich and famous men was not thrilling enough, she lived a double life as German spy during WWI. She is considered the 'Femme Fatale' for her activities as a double agent code named H-21 led to the death of many soliders. I'm interested in the intense parallels of the eroticism and violence that ran like a electrical current through her life.