Cindy Scaife

Cindy Scaife was born and raised in Toronto, Canada, and graduated from the Ontario College of Art and Design (OCAD). For over 25 years, she has worked as a full-time professional artist, muralist, and art educator.

Working in the Pop Surrealist style, Cindy is deeply influenced by Atomic Age art, design, and advertising illustration. Drawing from the era’s colour palette and optimism, her work reflects its nostalgia and perceived innocence. Her visual language is rooted in the 1950s advertising mascot — the anthropomorphic character used to promote products — and is further inspired by classic children’s picture books and retro toys from the 1950s and 1960s.

Cindy has participated in numerous group exhibitions, with several receiving local media attention. The group show Fordmainia proved pivotal, launching her solo exhibition career. Her Toronto solo exhibitions — True Patriot Grub, a tribute to Canadian cuisine, and A Salt and Butter – Condiments and Their Culinary Companions — were both warmly received, with the latter expanding her reach to a broader international audience.

In 2017, Cindy held her first U.S. solo exhibition at Chicago’s Rotofugi Gallery. Sweet Home Chicago paid tribute to the city’s candy history, continuing her exploration of anthropomorphic food imagery and its cultural significance.

In her newest series, Cindy continues to examine our relationship with food and memory, inviting viewers to reconnect with the places, dishes, and snacks that shape personal and collective experience.