The Beatles, Marilyn Monroe and The Queen as you've never seen them before...on 900 slices of burnt TOAST
28 May 2012
This artist has certainly earned his crust - crafting celebrities out slices of burnt TOAST.
Henry Hargreaves charred 900 slices of bread to create each member of the Beatles, a portrait of the Queen and a picture of screen siren Marilyn Monroe.
He meticulously burnt parts of the bread using a creme brulee torch - before laying them out on the floor of his studio in Brooklyn, New York.
Beatles on bread: Die-hard Beatles fan and artist Henry Hargreaves created images of all four band members using burnt toast - clockwise from top left, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr
Spot on: The artist charred 900 slices of bread to create each member of the Beatles, a portrait of the Queen and screen siren Marilyn Monroe
Henry said: 'I was really happy with the final images - people tell me it's the best thing since sliced bread.
'I just hope I did the boys justice.'
The Beatles fan said he found inspiration for the work after hearing about a piece of half-eaten toast George Harrison left behind while the Beatles toured.
Raising a toast: Henry Hargreaves celebrates finishing his portrait of The Queen by tucking into...a piece of toast
Painstaking: Hargreaves created the unusual artworks at his studio in Brooklyn by burning the slices of bread using a creme brulee torch
He said: 'It sold for an incredible amount at auction and gave me the idea to recreate their iconic portraits using toast.'
Henry crafted the portraits with the help of two pals using an incredible 40 loaves for each image.
He painstakingly cut stencils of the famous faces from reams of tin foil and used these to perfectly burn the bread.
Henry, originally from New Zealand, said: 'One of the things that baffled me when I moved to the US was the bread.
Wacky: The artist used 40 loaves of bread to recreate each image - amounting to a staggering 900 slices
'In New Zealand we have the most terrific selection of breads - but I soon realised Wonderbread is king in America.
'It's legendary for how long it survives without going off. It proved perfect for the toast art, giving me enough time to complete it without it going mouldy.'
Of the fab four, Henry said: 'The Beatles have always been there for me, my parents were big fans.
'They both went to see them as kids in Christchurch in New Zealand many years before they ever met.
'They both went to see them as kids in Christchurch in New Zealand many years before they ever met.
'They can do no wrong in my eyes.'
