HUGH MCMAHON Hugh McMahon 718-625-6171 Hugh McMahon, ...

Hugh McMahon, a professional pumpkin carver, is experiencing the lull before the storm, which for him is the three-month carving blitz surrounding Halloween, his peak season.

Twenty-six years ago, McMahon, who has formal arts training from the Kansas City Art Institute and the University of Illinois, began to pursue the unlikely path of food carver after a particularly elaborate pumpkin that he had crafted for his sister's Brooklyn Heights stoop garnered quite a bit of attention. McMahon has been plying the pumpkin-carving trade ever since, adding watermelons to his repertoire 15 years ago to drum up additional business during the off-season.

Though they haven't reached the popularity of his pumpkins, McMahon carves his watermelons using the same method as he does the gourds?a technique that he calls the "skin cut." McMahon's secret is in avoiding cutting through the flesh entirely, taking advantage of different depths of flesh and the effects that they can achieve with light radiating from the inside. This practice is particularly effective for portraiture, which is McMahon's specialty. Though one wouldn't expect it, McMahon is able to achieve nuance and striking personality in his renderings that recall the wily esthetic of a wood cut. Not only is he adept at creating likenesses of celebrities and historical figures (Abe Lincoln, Ronald Regan, Conan O'Brien), his light play (he's replaced the-old fashioned candle with a light bulb) allows McMahon to illuminate the whites of eyes and teeth, brighten chins and cheeks, creating an eerie glow that smacks of life beneath the skin.

McMahon is the premier carver on the scene. What "the scene" is, well, that varies. McMahon's handiwork has gotten him a lot of A-list mileage, including gigs on Good Morning America, Live! With Regis and Kathy Lee, Martha Stewart Living, a billboard in Times Square (his pumpkins appeared in a mammoth ad for Kodak) and parties for the likes of Kirsty Hume, Donovan Leitch, Naomi Campbell and Kate Moss. McMahon says that, when he started, he was one of the only ones doing what he does. Now, there are carvers from Detroit, Boston, Denver, Chicago and Long Island.

"There are many people who carve on my technique," says McMahon, seated at a small table by his regular carving haunt, the Chelsea Market's Manhattan Fruit Exchange, beside a watermelon that he had just finished sculpting into the likeness of a blazing sun. To achieve the sometimes-dazzling effects, McMahon works with humble instruments: a small serrated fruit knife, an X-acto knife, a scraper and a water-soluble marker.

McMahon enjoys contextualizing his work into topical themes because it gives the pieces some momentary relevance?since the works only last a few days before they begin to rot?and provides him with a challenge that goes beyond typical Halloween imagery. Last fall he assembled a tableau with George W. Bush and Saddam Hussein, and during our visit was preparing for a trip to California, where McMahon was to assemble other timely likenesses?Bob Hope, Katharine Hepburn, Arnold Schwarzenegger?for The Early Show on CBS.

Though portraits are his claim to fame, McMahon still comes across the occasional dissatisfied customer. "Anna Wintour didn't like her portrait. She asked for it to be taken down."