Desiree Engel immigrated to the United States in 1945 from her native Yugoslavia and has lived in Southern California since then. She resides in Anaheim and has three children, seven grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.
Ms. Engel was introduced to art as a child by a well-known artist in her hometown Zagreb. During and long after World War II there was no opportunity to indulge her passion for art, but when her youngest son was in his last year of high school she enrolled at California State University in Fullerton and proceeded to earn B.A., M.A. and M.F.A. degrees. She received the Master of Fine Arts degree in 1995.
She exhibited extensively throughout Southern California and the United States, as well as in her native Croatia (former Yugoslavia) and has received numerous awards for her work. Mrs. Engel has worked in various printmaking media, mixed media, fused and cast glass, ceramic sculpture and installations. Her work is in private collection in the United States, Switzerland, Sweden and Australia. She taught hand-built ceramics at Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Cal State University Fullerton (OLLI-CSUF).