She’s been jokingly called “Anne of Scream Gables” and her photo is making the rounds on social media.
With her piercing, protruding eyes and trademark red braids, the large doll spotted in a Cape Breton thrift store has been mocked on Facebook, but a Nova Scotia man says it’s actually a work of art by his late mother — and one he’d like to find.
A photo of the doll was posted Oct. 17 to the Facebook group ThriftStore and GoodwillFind, which has some 217,000 followers.
“Found and left at Value Village in Sydney, N.S.,” wrote the poster. “If you’re looking for something to possibly murder you while you sleep, she can be yours for $19.99.”
Andrew Danylewich said he was pleasantly surprised to see the photo come across his Facebook news feed, even with the joking comments being made on it.
“It was staring right at me — like the very first picture on my feed — and I was just sort of shocked to see the piece that my mom made like 40 years ago,” he said.
Danylewich is an artist based in Liverpool, N.S., and owns ADJA Studio and Gallery. The Anne Shirley piece was created by his late mother, Heather Danylewich, an artist from Ottawa. Her primary medium was fabric and she often created pieces that were larger than life, including complex fabric murals.
“She was what she would call a soft sculpture artist and she worked primarily in fabric and made three-dimensional things. So she would do a lot of work for museums or government buildings. She made a giant wampum bird for the lobby of the [Royal] Canadian Mint,” said Danylewich.
“I’m sure everyone has actually seen her work, but she’s never been accredited to it.”
Danylewich believes the piece spotted at the Value Village was made for the 75th anniversary of the publishing of Lucy Maud Montgomery’s classic novel, Anne of Green Gables.
Because his mother worked in fabric, Danlyewich said there aren’t many surviving pieces out there. About 20 years ago, he spotted some monarch butterfly caterpillars made by her at the Museum of Natural History in Halifax but they were looking a little worse for wear.
He believes some of the few surviving pieces are in Library and Archives Canada in the form of several soft sculptures of prime ministers.
Danlyewich doesn’t own any of his mother’s pieces and is hoping to find the Anne sculpture. When CBC News went to Value Village, however, the piece was no longer there and staff couldn’t recall when they’d last seen it.
When asked about the ribbing the doll is taking, Danylewich said he was initially a little dismayed but admitted it is funny.
“At first … I was like, ‘Oh, come on, man, that’s not fair,’ but, you know, the eyes have come a little loose over time. And she does have a bit more of a googly-eyed appearance,” he said.
But he said he still recognizes her smile.
“I think the smile on Anne’s face is actually my mother’s smile, like that’s the way she smiled. So I thought that really hit me when I saw it.”
Danylewich said if he does find the piece, he’ll display it at his gallery. If not, he hopes whoever has it enjoys it.
“If someone’s going to love it, that’s great, right?”
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