Collecting Key West: The Work of Mario Sanchez
Regarded as one of the leading folk artists of the 20th century, Mario Sanchez (1908-2005) was born in Key West, the descendant of Cuban immigrants with connections to the cigar industry. Drawing inspiration from the Gatoville neighborhood where he was raised, Sanchez carved nostalgic scenes of the cultural diversity of his island home. The woodcarvings, or intaglios, are a visual feast filled with the music, people, smells, and emotions of Key West during simpler times when cars and tourists did not infuse the streets. Institutional collectors of his work include the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the American Folk Art Museum, the Whitney Museum of American Art, and the Key West Art & Historical Society.
A self-taught artist, Sanchez was born in 1908 on the upper floor of his family’s Duval Street bodega. As a young man, he began carving the likeness of local fish out of pieces of discarded tobacco crates, which he sold for $1.50. In the 1940s, at the urging of his mother-in-law, Sanchez fashioned more complicated scenes portraying life in Key West as he recalled from his childhood. A portion of his life was also spent with his wife Rosa in the Ybor City area of Tampa where he also carved scenes of its Cuban community that mirrored life in Key West. His woodcarvings illustrate the places and events that made old Key West distinctive—Bahamian funeral processions, young children flying Cuban kites and playing baseball, Boza’s comparsa dancers, street peddlers selling their daily catch, cigar factory workers, and the Cuban pirulí man, along with meaningful buildings, docks and businesses.
During his more than 70-year career, Sanchez developed his own unique style while mastering more traditional skills such as bas-relief carving and perspective. Working in his ‘Studio Under the Trees’, the artist began his process by sketching his vision on a brown grocery bag, and then used carbon paper to transfer the drawing to the wooden canvas before setting to work with chisels and simple brushes. Adding the bright colors of the tropics, he produced extraordinary primitive art while preserving and memorializing the rich history of the island he loved. Of his work, Sanchez adopted a motto: ‘Se que mi modesto arte no es bueno, pero gusta,’ or ‘I know my modest art isn’t good, but it pleases.’
Exploring the crossroads of art and history, this exhibition delves into Sanchez’s enduring legacy on the twentieth anniversary of his death. Concentrating on the ordinary people that he portrayed in his works, the accompanying didactic material evince Sanchez as the steward of the island’s people, history and culture. The display features over forty works that span his entire career, several that have never been shown publicly in a museum setting. In addition to the preparatory drawings and intaglios, visitors can discover Mario’s worktable, carving and painting tools, along with personal effects.
