Pat and Earle Henderson, two snowbirds from Canada, couldn’t resist pulling over when they saw the sculptures lined up around the Barberville Yard Art Emporium like a whimsical security force ― a 7-foot hen, a dragon and snarling bears among them.
The couple, whose winter home is in Daytona Beach, happened to see the sculptures, many of which are well above human height, while driving near the State Road 40 and U.S. 17 intersection in the Barberville community.
Pat posed with a rooster sculpture that stood taller than her while Earle took a photo with his cellphone.
“Right up our alley. This is pretty neat,” Earle Henderson said.
The couple talked briefly and then walked under the 19-foot giraffe sculpture that stood over one of the entrances. The business is more like a tourist attraction in Volusia County, having been featured in multiple media stories over the years.
People might not be happy when they arrive at the business, but most end up smiling after they come to his shop, business owner Carlos Pendola said. That’s the reaction he wants to evoke with his eclectic collection of about 800,000 pieces of yard art ― his truck for deliveries brings the same energy; a giraffe’s head sticks out over the front cab.
Pendola took a break on a recent day to talk about the business and a little about what he’s learned since he took over the shop over a decade ago.
Pendola’s inventory includes teakwood furniture, recycled cast aluminum creations, wrought iron and steel pieces and ceramics from Mexico. People can buy many types of sculpted animals, including horses, cattle, eagles, chickens, lions and zebras. He avoids mass-produced products and puts a unique touch on his items.
“If it’s machine-made, I do not want it,” he said.
Pendola bought the shop about 14 years ago. A former car dealer in Miami, he was new to the business and has learned a lot about his customers ― including the connections that some people have with wildlife.
“There’s bird people. There’s lion people. Elephant people. And once you interact with one of these persons, you find out that they’ve got so many lions or so many elephants of all kinds,” Pendola said.
He once delivered a 4-foot buffalo sculpture to a man in Georgia. The man told Pendola he was sad about how buffalos were treated in the United States. He invited Pendola in to see the rest of his buffalo collection.
“He showed me a collection of probably four or five thousand buffalos that he had inside of his house, all sizes, all materials,” Pendola said.
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In an area off-limits to customers, a field of unfinished sculptures awaited a paint job.
The sculptures first get an acid wash then get a coat of black paint as a base, Carlos’ son Wesslie Pendola said. From there the team paints on the colors and finishes with a clear coat that protects the sculpture from the elements.
One of Wesslie Pendola’s creations for a local customer was a mailbox-and-eagle-sculpture hybrid.
“We opened the chest of a big eagle and we inserted that mailbox. It came out beautiful,” he said.
Lawn decorations provide more than just a lighthearted touch and a source of income for Carlos Pendola.
He chose two sculptures to honor his son Giancarlo who died at 21 years old in a car accident. One sculpture is a knight on a horse, which represents elements of his son’s character such as “faith, loyalty, courage and honor.”
A few years later he decided to add another sculpture to represent that his son’s spirit is now free and in a better place. So he brought in an eagle.
“I promised myself that every time that somebody asks me about it, I will tell the story. It’s my way of honoring his spirit,” he said.
Carlos Pendola said in recent years he’s seen the world become a more politically divided place. But he wants his business to remain a place where people leave with uplifted spirits.
“There’s a lot of changes. There’s a lot of uncertainty. And what I found here was a source of happiness for my family myself and for my customers,” he said.
