An Abbotsford studio that creates hand-carved wooden characters has begun a campaign to raise funds to produce a line of Pinocchio characters.
The Xenis Gallery was founded in 1995 by Marlene Xenis, who was later joined by her two daughters, Tania and Jesse, and a team of highly skilled artisans.
The team hand-carves collectible dolls out of a variety of woods, including Canadian maple, and has garnered attention from around the world.
The studio sources components for their wooden characters from around the world and brings them back to their studios to be assembled and given their final artistic touches.
The creations include characters such as the Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Snow White and Rose Red, and more.
But Marlene said times have changed and the studio is struggling in a world geared to mass production.
Marlene said production of such a piece is expensive and a Kickstarter campaign has been started to help lower the costs and make the Pinocchio figures more affordable to more people.
The Pinocchio Project aims to raise $7,000. For more information, search “Pinocchio Project" at kickstarter.com or visit xenis.com.