Charley Harper was a Cincinnati-based American
Modernist artist. He was best known for his highly stylized wildlife
prints, posters and book illustrations.
In a style he called "minimal realism", Charley Harper captured the
essence of his subjects with the fewest possible visual elements. When
asked to describe his unique visual style, Charley responded:
When I look at a wildlife or nature subject, I don’t see the
feathers in the wings, I just count the wings. I see exciting shapes,
color combinations, patterns, textures, fascinating behavior and
endless possibilities for making interesting pictures. I regard the
picture as an ecosystem in which all the elements are interrelated,
interdependent, perfectly balanced, without trimming or unutilized
parts; and herein lies the lure of painting; in a world of chaos, the
picture is one small rectangle in which the artist can create an
ordered universe.
– Charley Harper
He contrasted his nature-oriented artwork with the realism of John
James Audubon, drawing influence from Cubism, Minimalism, Einsteinian
physics and countless other developments in Modern art and science. His
style distilled and simplified complex organisms and natural subjects,
yet they are often arranged in a complex fashion. On the subject of his
simplified forms, Harper noted:
I don't think there was much resistance to the way I simplified
things. I think everybody understood that. Some people liked it and
others didn't care for it. There's some who want to count all the
feathers in the wings and then others who never think about counting
the feathers, like me.
– Charley Harper
The results are bold, colorful, and often whimsical. The designer
Todd Oldham wrote of Harper, "Charley’s inspired yet accurate color
sense is undeniable, and when combined with the precision he exacts
on rendering only the most important details, one is always left with
a sense of awe."