Deceased March 12, 1998

View alumni profile (log in required)

In Memory

Warren Shaw died in San Francisco on March 12, 1998, at the age of 49. His passing was due to complications from ALS. He was the son of Benjamin ’33 and Harriet Shaw and grew up in Westchester County, N.Y., until the family moved to Maine when Warren was a teenager. Prior to entering Amherst, he graduated from Exeter Academy, and shorty after Amherst, he moved to San Francisco.

The Amherst Biographical Record lists his occupation as “furniture maker” and the San Francisco Chronicle in his obituary stated that he ran “a woodworking shop.” While both are technically accurate descriptions, neither conveys what he really did. The Chronicle also stated that he made “custom furniture and cabinets for clients and various stands for exhibits shown around the world.” Perhaps his biggest and best client was the San Francisco Exploratorium, for which he created the custom housing and cabinetry for its numerous exhibits.

The people who knew Warren thought of him as an artist more than as a carpenter. At an early age, he had a great love of aesthetics but gave no indication of what he would later create. When his mother decided to restore their 18th century Maine home to its original design, Warren was not part of the effort. At Amherst, he majored in religion which was consistent with his ongoing interest in philosophy and aesthetics. Even after Amherst and his move to San Francisco, he avoided the artist’s life and spent five years at Bank of America in the field of computer programming, although his real desire was to attend graduate school and study music. From an early age, he loved music and, until his illness, enjoyed playing classical music and jazz on the piano.

Following his stint at the bank, he decided to run his own business and taught himself woodworking. He started by restoring furniture and eventually developed the craft for which he will be remembered. Even as he was stricken with ALS and his memory was failing, he retained the ability to look at a piece of wood and see what it might become. A close friend of his, Gary Roboff, told me that while Warren’s parents stressed academics and anticipated that he would choose a more traditional profession, Warren’s family had a history of inventors, engineers and philosophers. Gary stated that Warren may have been rebelling against his family, but more than likely, he was exercising the aesthetic appreciation that had always been a part of his life.

Warren leaves his wife, Alice, and two young children, Emily and Noah, as well as a brother, Robert. The Class of ’70 wishes to express its feelings of loss and sorrow to his family.

George L. Triano ’70