Sue DiCicco

Artist

What is Sue DiCicco known for?

Born on April 28, 1959, in Southern California, Sue DiCicco is an acclaimed American sculptor, children's book author, and illustrator. She attended San Marcos High School, Santa Barbara, CA, before her pursuits in the arts brought her to the California Institute of the Arts. She counts among her alumni Tim Burton, John Lasseter, Chris Buck, and Joe Ranft. Her early career was spent as an animator at the famed Walt Disney Company.

DiCicco went on to open her own studio and wrote dozens, while illustrating hundreds, of fascinating children's storybooks. She often collaborated with her late husband, Gil DiCicco, at both DiCicco Studios and DiCicco Digital Arts. DiCicco most recently spread her creative wings as the illustrator for many Classic Golden Books, including Poky Little Puppy and Shy Little Kitten, to name just a few.

An important chapter in her life included being commissioned in 2002 to sculpt a heroic sized John Denver statue for the Windstar Foundation. Following its closure in 2013, the statue was donated to the Colorado Music Hall of Fame and unveiled at its new location at Red Rocks Amphitheatre near Morrison, Colorado in spring 2015.

Apart from her individual pursuits, DiCicco founded Armed with the Arts and the Peace Crane Project in early 2013. The former aimed to arm children with the skills to express their creativity, and the latter was featured in Purpose Global's inaugural list of the 500 most influential global initiatives for peace in 2016.