It's quite literally any chocoholic's dream: Melting clocks, Venus with a golden egg and actress Mae West's lips, all made of chocolate.

These images from works by Salvador Dali were recreated in chocolate by food artist Prudence Emma Staite. To celebrate chocolate week, between October 4 and 10, and the centenary of Dali's birth, her sculptures are exhibited in the Dali Universe on London's South Bank.

For her replica of Dali's Space Venus, Staite used 50kg of Barry Callebaut plain chocolate. But the information tag warns: "Please do not eat this piece for hygiene!"

The artist has "personally interacted" with the piece by licking and biting into it. Her tongue marks reveals layers underneath the glossy finish commercially associated with chocolate.

Like clay, you can mould chocolate by carving and melting areas. "I use my tongue and my teeth as chisels."

Five "chocolate paintings" resemble some of Dali's most famous creations, such as Persistence of Memory and his self-portrait with its curling moustache.

Due to the high sugar content of the chocolate, the works can last up to three years.

All of the pieces in the exhibition are on sale. Staite's version of the iconic Persistence of Memory attracted an offer of £600, a spokeswoman of the Dali Universe said.

Andrea Petroni, managing director of the County Hall Gallery, which houses the Dali Universe, said the master had a "unique relationship with food that infiltrated much of his work". For one, he developed his droopy clocks from melting Camembert cheese.

Staite goes one step further: "The aim of my work is to get people involved, to taste art, and to experience art."

To bring home her message, there is a 9-tier cake stand filled with elements of Dali's art: Eyes from his painting Spellbound; clocks from Persistence of Memory; moustaches from Dali himself; eggs and breasts from Space Venus and lips modelled on the Mae West Lips sofa. Viewers are invited to nibble throughout chocolate week.

"I think that art should be an experience that everyone, any age, can relate to," Staite says. "Art should not only stimulate the eye, but the whole body and senses, and ultimately the stomach."

  • The chocolate exhibition runs from October 4 to 31in the Dali Universe, County Hall Gallery, on the South Bank. Admission is free with a ticket to the Dali Universe.