Danielle Hornyak, junior student in the 3D metals and jewelry fine arts program, creates gems out of deceased dung beetles, shimmering beehives for dead honey bees and a wall of beads cascading from bronze cast nipples.
Hornyak works in a more conceptual state of mind, drawing upon old memories from found objects and inspirational quotes when thinking up new pieces. She had never taken a 3D metals class before attending Cal State Long Beach, but her now running exhibit “Sunder” in the Merlino Gallery displays 14 intricately detailed pieces comparable to a professional level.
Walking into the gallery, one is drawn in by the back wall, which holds an installation of iridescent white bronze cast nipples. Underneath the white strands of beads that hang from each casting is a coral pink female uterus, which displays the same amount of fancy and iridescence as the surrounding female body parts.
The narrow gallery walls hold new art pieces and stories derived from common objects, some found and others as gifts from friends. One piece, “The Busy Bee has no Time for Sorrow,” creates a new home for a dead honey bee, consisting of a complex honeycomb pattern, sparkling with yellow and gold rhinestones.
She used multiple layers of copper and bronze panels to showcase the busy world of the bee’s home. She works in conflicting ideas of being busy versus dwelling on the past.
“It became a self portrait about how I work,” Hornyak said.
Inspiration for the piece came from a bee that was given to Hornyak as a gift from a friend about two years ago.
“She found it on the ground already posed,” she said.
Hornyak enjoys working with insects and incorporating them into her sculptures. Her piece “Tiny Savior,” puts a dung beetle in the center of a glass case, decorating it with ornate gold and purple jewelry, resembling a certain degree of royalty.
After doing research on underappreciated animals, Hornyak wanted to elevate the dung beetle to a higher status.
“Historically, dung beetles get rid of waste material,” she said. “Their role is actually valuable.”
Hornyak puts in a great amount of thought and time into each piece, starting out with research for each idea then crafting and perfecting the work to fully encapsulate the idea. The conceptual approach to art in her classes opened her up to creating work that has more meaning than just being made for aesthetic reasons.
“Sometimes art is just there to be pretty, but with this you can see what she was thinking,” said Masao Paderna, a fifth-year journalism major.
Hornyak will attend the 2012 Society of North American Goldsmiths Conference in Arizona, which brings together jewelry makers and showcases their works in juried exhibitions. This summer, she plans to teach 11-to-16-year-olds at an arts camp in Connecticut.
“I just know from seeing her doing work and working with metal myself that this show is really above and beyond what anyone has to do,” said Brianna Allen, who is also a third year as a CSULB metals art major.
The student art galleries are open from noon to 5 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays between the FA2 and FA3 buildings.
