Wayne A. Barnes

Wayne A. Barnes worked foreign counterintelligence cases in his 29-year career in the FBI. He has completed a manuscript about his part in the investigation to uncover the KGB’s mole in the FBI—Robert Hanssen—and is pursuing publication.

A Powerful Life Lesson From a Former FBI Agent

How a small act of kindness became the key to catching a murderer.

Leadership June 5, 2025
The Hounds of Antigua

In 2004, I spent seven glorious months on "de island of Antigua, Mon!" (And that is an-TEE-gah, for ...

Travel July 20, 2021
The Gift of Seashells: A Father’s Hope for His Children

On a recent trip to the Dominican Republic, I had the opportunity to purchase five seashells. I haggled ...

Family & Education June 16, 2021
Taking You There: The Glory of Albert Bierstadt: ‘Among the Sierra Nevada, California’

Have you ever had a painting show up at different times in your life when you needed it ...

Fine Arts May 26, 2021
As Young as You Feel

I have always appeared younger than my chronological age. At 17, and high school graduation, I still looked ...

Family & Education May 5, 2021
Taking You There: Love Amid Catastrophe With ‘Nydia, the Blind Flower Girl of Pompeii’

Several years ago, I commissioned a fine artist to paint my girlfriend’s favorite photo of her two teenage ...

Fine Arts April 7, 2021
Natalia’s Dance

“The Skyline Elementary School in Solana Beach will have its fifth annual talent show,” the announcement read. The ...

Family & Education April 6, 2021
Taking You There: Frederic Remington Hurls You Into the Wild West With ‘The Rattlesnake’

There are eras in American history from the colonial days to the revolution, then Manifest Destiny, stretching our ...

Fine Arts February 24, 2021
A Personal Perspective on Ion Mihai Pacepa

Commentary A man walked into the American Embassy in West Germany in late July, 1978. He said he ...

Viewpoints February 21, 2021
Taking You There: A Veranda of Lush Colors in ‘Parrots and Rooftops’

John Powell has been one of my favorite artists for years. He resides in a comfy home with ...

Fine Arts January 25, 2021
Taking You There: ‘The Mountain and the Valley’

On Christmas break during my last year of law school in 1970, I felt pretty good, with one ...

Fine Arts January 1, 2021
Taking You There: Nature’s Sweeping Image in ‘A Rocky Coast’

For years, I wrote only about what piqued my interest. In discussing art—paintings and sculpture—it was either pieces ...

Fine Arts November 27, 2020
Taking You There: ‘At Noon on a Cactus Plantation in Capri’

Since retiring from the FBI, I have worked privately for large insurance companies recovering numerous pieces of stolen ...

Fine Arts November 5, 2020
Taking You There: ‘Seated Maiden Lacing Her Sandal’

A young woman walks down a trail through the woods. She has been this way many times—as though ...

Fine Arts October 8, 2020
Taking You There: ‘Stepped Rocks With Water’

After 29 years in the FBI, I investigate privately, including cases of recovering stolen art. That puts me ...

Fine Arts September 28, 2020