Striped Beetle

Washington, D.C.-based sculptor Joan Danziger enlists metal wire, iridescent glass, celluclay, and paint to create her much-larger-than-life-sized sculpted beetles. Some of her sculptures measure nearly five feet or more. The artist notes that her work uses “animal imagery as metaphorical or psychological subjects giving the sculptures a life of their own creating a magical world. Beetles, especially the scarab, have inspired creative myths in many cultures because of their ability to survive, and have been objects of fascination and awe.”

The artist earned a BFA in painting from Cornell University and continued her studies at the Art Students League in New York and the American Academy of Fine Arts in Rome. Danziger has exhibited throughout the U.S. including Washington, DC’s American University and the Corcoran Gallery of Art, and the New Jersey State Museum, among others.