Cindy Pacileo

Cindy Pacileo has  loved the outdoors her entire life. As a child, she went for long walks every week with her family, and learned to love the shapes and colors of the woods and the creatures who made it their home.

She fell in love with pen and ink drawing, and was especially fascinated with creating textured patterns. This love of texture shows up strongly in her clay work, where she uses seashells, lace, and seed pods to texture details like owl eyes, llama fur, and bird wings.

Cindy began sculpting small animals in clay in 1972,  and three years later moved her studio to the mountains of North Carolina - where Little Guys came into being. She still pinches the personality into each Little Guy herself - and hand draws each little smile.