Like many Americans, Gisela Pferdekaemper has strong European ties.
Born in the small town of Gettorf, Schleswig-Holstein, in northern Germany, her love of animals and her artistic bent became apparent at an early age. Her father, reminded perhaps by stories of artists vainly trying to eke out a living in freezing garrets, tried to channel Gisela’s talents towards what he considered a "practical profession", such as graphics or drafting.