Nantucket Carving and Folk Art a studio of hidden treasures
BY MARY LANCASTER INDEPENDENT WRITER

PHOTOS BY ROB BENCHLEY Paul McCarthy and Jean Petty, owners of Nantucket Carving and Folk Art.

T ucked away in the basement of Arrowhead Nursery's Wampanoag Drive showroom is a very, very busy studio run by two highly talented people who create a multitude of skilled and beautiful work. They have been recognized for the island signs and quarterboards they have done, but that represents just one facet of their combined abilities.

"We do many, many other things," said Paul McCarthy, a self-taught craftsman who co-owns Nantucket Carving and Folk Art with Jean Petty. They opened their studio two years ago but have known each other far longer and seem to possess the ideal synergy.

"He carves and I paint and do the finish work," said Petty. "We all carve, but we don't come close to the master."

McCarthy, who began carving in 1956 after being inspired to learn the craft by his high school shop teacher, opened his first studio in Scituate, Mass. in 1969. That is where Petty, who is also self-taught, met him 18 years ago.

Shaker boxes painted by Petty show many traditional folk art scenes.

Petty started her career making bread dough Christmas ornaments in the 1970s, then had her own candle company in California. She returned to New England and became involved with graphic arts for several years, which was what she was practicing when she first met McCarthy. About 10 years ago, McCarthy, who used to run the Nantucket Artisans Guild, decided to travel to Scituate Harbor for some smelt fishing and he and Petty bumped into one another at a coffee shop. She showed him the folk art she was working on and he told her that her place was on Nantucket.

Approximately eight years ago, Petty began visiting the island and found success selling her pieces at Nantucket Looms, Four Winds Craft Guild and Sylvia Antiques. She moved here permanently in 2006 and just a few months later, she and McCarthy joined artistic forces and launched Nantucket Carving and Folk Art.

They are known for many accomplishments, including carving and painting the impressive and massive "Going on the Whale" that hangs outside the Whaling Museum. It took two weeks for McCarthy to carve the six-by-10-foot display and one week for Petty to complete the painting.

A visit to the studio, filled with the sweet odor of wood and barrels of wood shavings, paint brushes and drawings, quickly indicates how many talents they have. It is also where they host weekly carving and painting classes and have a restoration room where projects repairing mostly old carvings are carried out.

McCarthy's carving abilities, using knives he fashions himself, are unlimited. He has beautifully detailed birds, whales, carved wooden baskets and island scenes on display or in the completion process for work commissioned by private homeowners. Petty's work includes a variety of folk art paintings on decorative oars, table tops, Shaker boxes, framed paintings, lamp bases, murals, mantels and custom floor cloths.

"I can do whaling scenes in my sleep now," she said. "We can do it all. We do decorative painting and faux painting, and that's just us. We have students who have work for sale. Whatever [people] can think of, we can do it."

Nantucket Carving and Folk Art is open year-round. They hold classes on Wednesday nights and in the afternoon on Thursdays and Saturdays, but there is a 10- student maximum. Students take a six-week, renewable course and may choose whatever project they want to tackle. McCarthy and Petty enjoy the course as much as their pupils because they get to know so many new people of all ages and of like mind, artistically.

"We like challenges in here," said Petty. "It's a fun place." I