Shirley Eaton – the golden Bond girl!

One of the most iconic Bond girl scenes appears in Goldfinger when 007 discovers Jill Masterson’s
gold-painted corpse lying on the bed.

I’ve decided to paint this memorable 1964 scene in a series of three paintings (called a ‘triptych’) and
started with her lifeless hand hanging over the bed:-

Jill Masterson was played by actress Shirley Eaton. There were fears on the set that she could suffer
from ‘skin suffocation’ so a doctor was hired to be on set at all times and a section of her stomach
was left unpainted. Shirley Eaton spent 2 hours in make-up and the crew shot the scenes quickly to
minimise any risk.

Presumably for ‘good’ publicity, a rumour was spread that Shirley Eaton tragically died on set from
asphyxiation due to the gold paint (just like the movie plot).  Despite this urban myth Shirley Eaton
is very much alive and was 79 years old earlier this month.

This series of paintings has given me the chance to try out some gold leaf techniques.
Its fiddly work but the finished result really stands out nicely.