Buckhannon in Upshur County, West Virginia — The American South (Appalachia)

Unzipped

Public Art

Photographed by Bradley Owen, March 10, 2025

1. Unzipped Marker

Inscription.
Location #6C
Charley Harper • Unzipped • 1970 • Serigraph
Artist Statement

"Twice a year, the growing Crayfish finds himself splitting his seams. When he can no longer contain himself, Mother Nature unzips his hard exoskeleton and he slips out, soft and vulnerable, like a Jello dessert fresh from a crayfish mold. Indeed, dessert is what many of his neighbors - finned, furred, feathered, fanged, and fingered-would make of him. He may elude the bass, the raccoon, the heron, and the snake, only to have the fisherman put a hook through his tail and offer him to the bass." - Charley Harper

Artist Blography

Charley Harper (August 4, 1922 - June 10, 2007) was a Cincinnati-based American Modernist artist. He was born in Frenchton, West Virginia, and attended West Virginia Wesleyan College in Buckhannon, West Virginia. Harper's upbringing on his family farm influenced his work to his last days, and we celebrate him as West Virginia's most well-known native graphic artist.

Charley contrasted his nature-oriented artwork with the realism of John James Audubon and drew influence from Cubism, Minimalism, Einsteinian

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physics and countless other developments in modern art and science. His style distilled intricate organisms and natural subjects, yet they are often arranged in a complex fashion. The results are bold, colorful, and often whimsical. Charley, on numerous examples, explored outside the medium of graphic art and included short prose poems for his artworks.

Erected 2019 by www.ART26201.com. (Marker Number 6C.)

Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Arts, Letters, Music. A significant historical date for this entry is June 10, 1970.

Location. 38° 59.635′ N, 80° 13.711′ W. Marker is in Buckhannon, West Virginia, in Upshur County. It is on Traders Alley just south of East Main Street (County Route 151), on the left when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 39 East Main Street, Buckhannon WV 26201, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in North Central West Virginia.

It is also in the American South,

specifically in the Upper South,

in Appalachia,

and specifically in Northern Appalachia. Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

<i>Unzipped</i> and Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Bradley Owen, March 10, 2025

2. Unzipped and Marker

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Ladybugs Hibernating (here, next to this marker); Shadow Dancers (a few steps from this marker); Homebody (a few steps from this marker); Charles Burton "Charley" Harper (a few steps from this marker); Monkey Mural (a few steps from this marker); Stockert Building / People's Grocery & Home Hardware (within shouting distance of this marker); Dairy Queen / Buckhannon City Hall (within shouting distance of this marker); Sail Fence (within shouting distance of this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Buckhannon.

Credits. This page was last revised on April 8, 2025. It was originally submitted on April 1, 2025, by Bradley Owen of Morgantown, West Virginia. This page has been viewed 107 times since then and 14 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on April 1, 2025, by Bradley Owen of Morgantown, West Virginia.