The art thief

Classic artworks get an update in a new exhibition of work exploring the images through photography

Retirement meant anything but rest for former broadcaster Anna Grayson. Instead she decided to go to art school – her projects recreating classic masterpieces in photography has turned her into a successful artist, with work chosen for show by Turner Prize-winner Grayson Perry and a solo show in Exeter this year.

A geologist by training, Anna spent her working life as a writer and broadcaster – and was a regular voice on Radios 4 and 5 and was the first woman to present A Natural World on BBC2. She took early retirement in 2012 and followed her dream to art school. “I expected to learn new skills to fill my hours of retirement, but instead it turned into a whole new career, and a career I really love,” she says.

While her work reflects classic masterpieces, her location has constantly proved to be an inspiration. “I don’t think I could have shot half of these pictures if I did not live in Devon. The South Devon coast has provided locations for some quite unexpected pieces. Perhaps the most surprising of these was my version of the Mona Lisa, using the Teign Estuary in the Autumn to replicate the warm tones of Tuscany for the background. The female model I’d lined up dropped out because she felt it was too cold and so my husband took over. This turned out to be a bit of a career moment.”

Anna’s Moaning Geezer was one of two photo-pastiches to be chosen by Grayson Perry to be hung in his famous Yellow Gallery at the 250th anniversary Royal Academy Summer Exhibition. “It marked my passage from successful amateur granny to proper professional artist,” she says.