Susan Opie

"We live on a planet bursting with energy, and I want my sculpture to reflect this vitality and be as lively as possible."
-Susan Opie

Sculptor Susan Opie uses her work to display her affections for all creatures great and small; from the alligator to the grasshopper, the Bucks County artist loves them all. By making her bronze statues of magnificently proportioned arthropods, Opie intends to use these whimsical figures to motivate others to take care of our environment.

She began casting her own bronze statues in 1980 in Bucks County. Soon after, she built her own foundry near her farmhouse in Pleasant Valley where she lives with her husband, Bucks County painter John Opie. Today, she mainly creates site-specific works of insects, aquatic life, and other animals.

Opie has exhibited locally in the Bucks County area and at the Michener Art Museum as well as throughout the United States in New Jersey, New York, Ohio, and Kansas. Her collections are spread throughout the United States, including the Cleveland Museum of Art and the Michener Art Museum.

Education
B.F.A., Magna Cum Laude, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York
M.F.A., Carnegie-Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA

Connection to Bucks County
Susan Opie has lived and operated a studio in Bucks County since 1970, where she lives with her husband, painter John Opie, and their four children. She exhibited at the Michener Art Museum's outdoor sculpture program in 2008.

Major Solo Exhibitions
Michener Art Museum, Doylestown, PA, 2008
Allentown Art Museum Sculpture Garden, Allentown, NJ, 2006
Allentown Art Museum, Rodale Gallery, Allentown, NJ, 2006
Charles More Gallery, Philadelphia, PA, 1983, 1987, 1990, 1993, 1996
Sculptor for the Allentown Art Museum Showcase House, Allentown, NJ, 1996, 2006
Kemmerer Museum, Bethlehem, PA, 1985
Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA, 1969
Lowe Gallery, New Orleans, LA, 1967

Major Group Exhibitions
E. David Gallery, Bethlehem, PA, 2007
Art Show at the Dog Show, Wichita, KS, 2000, 2001
Louisiana State University Veterinary School of Medicine, Baton Rouge, LA, 1994, 1996
Allentown Art Museum, Allentown, NJ
Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
Akron Art Institute, Akron, OH
Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh, PA

Collections
First Lady Laura Bush
Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
Holland Automotive Collection, Allentown, NJ
Edinboro State College, Edinboro, PA
Western Washington State College, Bellingham, WA
Lauinger Library, Georgetown University, Washington, D.C.
Lehigh Valley Hospital, Allentown, PA
Michener Art Museum

Art Show at the Dog Show, Wichita, KA
Animals in Art, Louisiana State University Veterinary School of Medicine, Baton Rouge, LA
Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh, PA