Can I lick the spoon? Painting

Oil on gesso panel. Size includes frame. Still life painting of a tin of Lyle's black treacle with the lid askew and a spoon stuck in it, a drip slides down the side of the tin forming a puddle of black treacle on the table. Painted with artist quality oil paints. Framed, varnished and ready to hang. Reference material created using my own photographs and drawings. In 1950 Lyle’s Black Treacle, with its stronger bitter-sweet flavour and dark black colour is launched. The classic Lyle’s Golden Syrup tin as the world’s oldest unchanged brand packaging. It has remained essentially the same since the tin took shape in 1883. Lyle had strong religious beliefs, which is why the tin’s famous logo depicts strongman Samson’s ‘lion and bees’ from the Bible’s Old Testament, registered as Lyle’s trademark. ‘Out of the strong came forth sweetness’, as the quote goes; where bees produce honey inside the lion’s carcass, rich syrup pours from the well-loved tin… And the logo and design remain unchanged to this day. FRAME As an artist I was constantly disappointed with the way modern made frames would look with my work so I began to explore old techniques and recipes. Frames are constructed from top quality hardwood using best quality glue with strengthened corner joints. Once sanded, the frames are finished following a process which pre-dates the renaissance and is thought to have originated in ancient Egypt. The frame receives on average eight coats of gesso (natural hide glue mixed with chalk) and is allowed to dry. It is then sanded and polished. Several coats of clay bole are then brushed on and also polished. Finally the frame is then given a protective coating of bees wax producing a unique soft velvety finish.