Meet the Sheffield artist who has painted 615 fried eggs

An artist who creates realistic oil paintings of the eggs his partner fries for brunch has so far sold more than 600 of them.

When Daniel Halksworth first began painting food, he never expected he would end up making a living from yolks.

The 43-year-old, who lives in Sheffield, has amassed a 41,000-strong following on social media thanks to his designs.

His work now adorns the walls of egg enthusiasts across the globe and even featured in Hellmann’s 2024 Super Bowl commercial.

While Mr Halksworth had dabbled in art for most of his life, it was an old painting he had created at his parents’ house that completely changed his career trajectory.

One day he decided to paint a range of everyday objects, including shoes, a bathroom tap, an iced bun and a fried egg.

During lockdown, he started selling his art after his girlfriend Caz Haigh lost her retail job.

“Chances for me to exhibit or sell in shops vanished,” Mr Halksworth said.

“She sold a lot of her clothes to help pay rent and I got my art online.”

The egg painting quickly sold to someone local, Mr Halksworth said, but requests to buy it kept coming in.

Miss Haigh suggested that he simply painted another one and offered to fry an egg for him to use as the subject.

Now, four years on, he has painted 615 variations of a fried egg, some split, some peppered, double yolked, big, small or in a skillet.

After he has finished using them for inspiration, the couple and their dog Sid eat the eggs.

“We have eggs for brunch a couple of times a week – usually with avocado or spinach on toast – and will take a few reference pictures as soon as they’re fried before eating them,” Mr Halksworth said.

“Sid usually hovers around the pan looking expectant, so he has a little dog chew so he’s not left out.”

According to an “egg map” his girlfriend created, his work, which is usually released in batches on Fridays, has been shipped to 30 different countries.

Among the proud owners are some well-known celebrities and – much to Mr Halksworth’s amusement – a person who lives on Bacon Street and someone whose surname is Egg.

Earlier this year, one of his creations featured in mayonnaise brand Hellmann’s Super Bowl commercial with actress and comedian Kate McKinnon and Mayo Cat.

Mr Halksworth also paints other food-related items but his fried eggs are by far the most popular.

“I found people are quite particular about their eggs, some like them crispy, some like them smooth,” Mr Halksworth said.

“Avocados also became very popular at one point, as companion pieces.”

Despite having painted hundreds of fried eggs, Mr Halksworth said he had not lost his enthusiasm for the subject.

“I still enjoy it as I always have,” he said.

“Every time I paint an egg it feels like I’m doing the first one all over again.”

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