Gabor Fulap's Ladybug Sculpture Re-Imagines The Human Form

Artist Gabor Fulop doesn't work in bronze or marble. Instead, the sculptor creates ladybugs -- 20,000 of them -- and hand paints them before applying them to a human form.

His 2010 mixed media piece entitled simply "Ladybug" can be uncomfortable to look at it, as the viewer is forced to imagine what it would be like to have 20,000 of the charming creatures crawling on their own bodies. There's a slight disorientation, as the posture of the figure belies a calm, even spiritual essence -- a feeling that is quickly then done away with when a closer inspection reveals the insects.

"The focus of my interest is on living organisms, their relationships with each other and their environment," Fulop told The Huffington Post in an e-mail. "Eastern philosophy and pantheism give the basis of my approach."

Fulop said "Ladybug" "resembles a goddess of nature, a fusion of both human and animal organisms, that is both a unique being and a mass of creatures that took a human form."

What do you make of his sculpture? Check out this gallery and let us know in the comments below.