He's carved family members, politicians, sports logos, musicians, athletes and celebrities, but in the end, master pumpkin carver Rick McGarry describes himself as a New England Patriots fan first and pumpkin-carving enthusiast second. Each fall, these loves combine and the results are nothing less than works of art.
If you follow the Patriots on Twitter, you may have already seen one of his latest creations, a pumpkin featuring New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and his supermodel wife Gisele Bundchen. Using an iconic photo taken when the famous couple attended the MET Gala in New York City, this is just one of many amazing pumpkin carvings McGarry has completed throughout the years.
The Westford, Massachusetts, native first took up pumpkin carving in 1994 after seeing it on a popular television program. In the years since, he's improved his techniques, skills and expertise to create dozens of stunning carvings.
"In 1994 after seeing the Halloween special of the Roseanne sitcom with pumpkin carvings with the cast members faces on them, I thought it was very very cool," McGarry explained. "Back then they used to have a pumpkin carving contest where I worked and after some pretty lame attempts, I knew I had to step up my game. I had a theory/idea to photocopy an 8 x 10 picture of a coworker's daughter where the highlights of the facial features appear as white and the rest as black. Using tools and techniques from Pumpkin Masters I transferred the image to a pumpkin with a sharp poker or stylus and basically just cut out the white parts and threw a light in it. Strangely enough it looked more like Roseanne than my friends daughter but I was hooked anyway."
The recreational carver has received numerous compliments for his work throughout the years, which has included carving the likes of Freddy Krueger, Pamela Anderson, Jack Nicholson in "The Shining," rockers Green Day, Barack Obama, Bobby Orr, Michael Jackson and countless others. While he notes that he'd like to find a way to "support the habit," McGarry focuses on getting others interested in the fun of carving.
"Honestly, I just still have that 'this is cool' feeling and just like sharing that with others," he added. "Facebook has really helped to show them off and has brought a lot of attention. It's not as hard as it looks and as much as I try to recruit other carvers only my son Devon has really taken it up."
While his love of pumpkin carving only dates back to 1994, his support of the Patriots goes back as far as he can remember. Interestingly enough, the first celebrity pumpkin McGarry carved was the image of none other than Tom Brady.
"I've been a fan of all the local [Boston] teams as far back as I can remember," McGarry said. "I used to listen to the [Patriots] games on the radio back when they weren't selling out the games and were blacked out on TV. I'd have to go with Brady as a favorite, players like him don't come around very often."
Similar to how he shares carving with his son, McGarry shares his love of the Patriots with his wife, Janice.
"She is also a big fan, especially of Tom," he added of his wife. "She doesn't tolerate me yelling at him when he throws interceptions. We never miss a game on TV. It's so nice having a wife that makes plans around the Pats schedule."
Just as the Patriots work around the year in preparation for the fall, McGarry makes pumpkin carving a year-round event as well. During the off-season, he prepares the templates, selects the photos and plans out his designs. Like the Patriots, when the weather and the leaves turn each autumn, it's go time for pumpkin carving for Rick McGarry. Not a bad tradition if you ask me.
See more of Rick McGarry's creations, his Rick-O-Lanterns, on his personal website.
Happy Halloween Patriots fans!
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