Artist Makes Kevin Bacon Statue Out of Bacon

(Sept. 29) -- Here's a little food for thought: What if Hollywood actor Kevin Bacon were actually made out of tasty, crispy bacon?

Well, that delicious dream is now a reality thanks to J&D Foods, a Seattle company that specializes in all things bacon, from its very own bacon-flavored salt and mayonnaise -- aka "Baconnaise" -- to bacon-flavored lip balm and "MMMvelopes," envelopes that taste like bacon when the seal is licked.

Since owners Justin Esch and Dave Lefkow live by the motto "everything is better with bacon," the duo -- in partnership with bacon-crafting website What Do Bacon Do? -- decided to commission an artist to make a life-size bust of Kevin Bacon entirely out of bacon.

Why, you ask?

Well, they ask, "Why not?"

Besides the obvious puns, Esch told AOL News that there's a good reason behind their "Bacon Kevin Bacon" madness.

The bust is being auctioned off on eBay for 10 days starting today, and all proceeds from the sale of the wacky art piece will go to Ashley's Team, a nonprofit organization with a simple mission: to bring joy to children with cancer and their families.

Lefkow's 4-year-old daughter, Ashley, is the namesake and driving force behind Ashley's Team, since she was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia last year.

Esch says that whoever ends up winning the bidding war for "Bacon Kevin Bacon" will not only help children with cancer, but also become a legend themselves.

As the persuasive eBay listing states: "Buying it will make you the coolest person you will ever know, a champion of the underground meat sculpture movement."

Not to mention the buyer will, in theory, be only one degree of separation from Bacon in the infamous "Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon" game.

According to Esch, the masterpiece, which comes atop a classy marble slab, will look great wherever it's displayed.

"It should be in art gallery somewhere, but it would also look nice on a coffee table. I think it'll tie together any room nicely. Bacon makes everything better, including art," he says.

Esch predicts either a die-hard Kevin Bacon fan or just plain bacon lover will pony up big bucks for the "pop-culture art." Since the nonedible sculpture is meant to "last forever," Esch says the investment will be spent wisely.

"Bacon Kevin Bacon has been well-lacquered and will stay tasty for generations to come. He's not edible, just meant to be admired," Esch explains.

By the way, Esch says they obtained direct permission from Bacon (via the Bacon Brothers band publicist) to move forward with the project and adds, "Kevin Bacon is very charitable, so he was cool about it."

AOL News tried to reach out to Bacon and his people numerous times for comment about this before publication time, but we didn't hear back. Maybe he was busy enjoying a sizzling bacon breakfast and watching "Hollow Man."

Anyway, in Esch's "wildest dreams," the actor himself would end up bidding and winning the "Bacon Kevin Bacon" eBay auction and all would be right with the world.

Another man who'd get a kick out of that is Mike Lahue, the Pennsylvania artist who created the sculpture with his bare hands.

"Although I'm shooting to get it into the Smithsonian," he told AOL News with a laugh. "That way, it can be displayed to the masses forever."

The light-hearted artist, who also creates plush bacon crafts for the What Do Bacon Do? website, says he tackled the project by first carving a bust in the actor's likeness out of Styrofoam.

After realizing that using soft, cooked bacon would pose a serious "rot factor problem," Lahue opted for bacon bits as his main medium, using seven bottles of bits and glue to meticulously cover every crevice of Bacon's smiling face.

"I put five coats of lacquer on top, which sealed everything together. He's not going anywhere," he explains.

Besides bacon bits continually falling off as he worked on the sculpture over the course of three months, Lahue says another major challenge was his own grumbling stomach.

He admits working with bacon all day made him hungry for the crispy stuff, and says he curbed his craving by snacking on bacon bits throughout the project.

"I ate one whole bottle of bacon bits myself along the way. I'd put a little on the [sculpture's] head and then keep a little mouthful for me here and there. I had never eaten much bacon before this, but I've eaten a lot since. I'm having subconscious cravings!" Lahue says.

The artist is also hankering to see his creation in his refrigerator again, since that's where he stored it between touch-up sessions.

"I do miss seeing him in the fridge," he confesses. "I would get up in the middle of the night to get a glass of water and see him there, looking back at me with that grin. I got a little attached, so I hope he goes to a good home."

Despite having to part with his meaty masterpiece, "Bacon Kevin Bacon" will live for a long time to come in Lahue's heart -- and on his dining room floor.

Lahue says that months after finishing the sculpture, he's still finding random bacon bits scattered around his house.

Every time he finds one, he thinks back to the tedious hours he put into the project, especially filling in those pesky "bald spots" on the head and grooves on the face that would always lose a few bacon bits before getting lacquered into place.

In the end, Lahue is pleased with the way the bust turned out and that it's all for a good cause.

However, after months of bacon-on-Bacon action, Lahue admits he may never be able to look at actor Kevin Bacon the same way again. Next time "Footloose" is on, there's a good chance that all he'll be able to see is a dancing bacon strip, not Kevin Bacon busting a move.