Woodcarved Treasures

On Saturday, July 9, Keyes Art in Sag Harbor opens “Warren McHugh Woodcarvings — A Sag Harbor Treasure,” with an opening reception from 6 to 8 p.m. The exhibition of McHugh’s work runs through September 1.

Born in 1922, Warren McHugh, considered by many to be a gifted but unrecognized folk artist, opened Sag Harbor’s first art gallery, The Art Stall, in 1961. The quaint gallery on Madison Street was open every summer from 1963 until McHugh’s death in 1986. It represented a piece of historic Sag Harbor during the 1960s and 1970s where local craftsmen sold their art to locals, tourists and art collectors alike.

McHugh made his living as a Merchant Marine and began creating small woodcarvings while at sea during World War II. His only formal training in art was provided by the WPA (Works Progress Administration) under The New Deal.

He viewed himself as “a people’s artist” and sold his hand-crafted pine woodcarvings at prices way under market value so all could afford them.

McHugh and his wife, Arona, spent every summer from the 1960s to the mid 1980s in Sag Harbor. She was a bestselling novelist who published four novels for Doubleday, including “The Seacoast of Bohemia.”

Both Warren and Arona McHugh were part of the budding Hamptons’ literary and art scene at that time with such contemporaries as D.A. Pennebaker, Betty Friedan, Clive Irving and E.L. Doctorow.

After the war, McHugh began to work with found objects, often using white pine wood shingles as a canvas. The carvings were frequently historical figures from the 18th and 19th centuries, as well as literary and popular characters of the time. His most popular series was nautical figures of whalers, pirates and Navy men. The figures were derived from a 15th-century practice of life-sized wooden carvings that were often placed in shop windows to create the illusion that the shopkeeper was in.

Before his death, McHugh was showing in both New York City and East End galleries. He was a featured artist at the American Folk Art Museum’s exhibition “Nautical Folk Artists of Today.” His work was frequently shown in East Hampton’s Guild Hall Museum and McHugh’s Art Stall Gallery landed in New York Magazine’s “Best Bets.”

“This Sag Harbor hero carved the community, the illustrious local and international art scene,” said Julie Keyes. “The dancers, writers, artists that changed the art world and lived in Sag Harbor were his subjects. To honor his life in what would have been his 100th year, Keyes Art is honored to present this true Sag Harbor treasure.”

When McHugh died in 1986, his sons, Jonathan and Michael McHugh, sold the Sag Harbor gallery to restaurateur Jack Tagliasacchi of Il Cappuccino. The Art Stall’s landmark façade was perfectly preserved and the back room still contains many of McHugh’s woodcarvings, including the series, “Chefs” he made for Tagliasacchi and the restaurant.

Keyes Art is at 45 Main Street in Sag Harbor. Visit juliekeyesart.com for details.