Charges filed after underwear removed

Clyde Overcash

By Shelley Smith

ssmith@salisburypost.com

There’s an old saying that goes, “I don’t know art, but I know what I like.”

Well, Ann Caldwell Cave knows art — she’s the executive director of the Rowan Arts Council. And she knows what she doesn’t like, which apparently includes men’s underwear taped to a window.

The distinction has led to a larceny charge against Cave brought by the owner of the undies.

Clyde, formerly known as Clyde Overcash, recently displayed the white, size 2X briefs in the window of his Council Street shop, Off Main Antiques, and later said in a statement to police he considered it art.

As art often does, his display sparked debate.

Salisbury resident Cherie Turner uploaded a photo of the underwear onto her Facebook account.

Ray Chan left his comment on the photo: “I kinda like it, Cherie. Experiential shock art has reached Salisbury. Next, an Andres Serrano exhibit!?”

Others disagreed.

Cave wrote that “someone should spank that person” and later said it was a “disgusting and stupid thing to do.”

On July 23, someone suggested simply taking off the underwear since it was on the outside of the window. So Cave did.

Clyde had Cave charged with larceny for swiping the underwear from his window. He said in a statement to police she later called him and admitted she was the one who took down the skivvies.

In Clyde’s statement supporting the larceny charge, he wrote:

“Ms. Cave called to inform me that she was ‘insulted’ by a pair of underwear taped to my store window, and that she had taken them.

“I told her she did not have my permission and it was ‘art’ and was my freedom of expression.

“She was told to return said underwear and was contacted by Salisbury Police Sgt. Wilsey.”

Cave said in a telephone interview Friday afternoon she has hired an attorney to represent her on the charge — the first she’s ever faced.

“I told him it was inappropriate to have this on a window,” she said of the display.

At the time, she said she still had the underwear and has painted it to actually look like art.

She called the Post later Friday to say that she had returned the underwear and did not want to comment further.

Clyde could not be reached by telephone Friday.

The Salisbury Police Department served Cave with a warrant Thursday for a misdemeanor larceny charge in connection with the taking of Overcash’s property — the underwear — which was valued at $5.

Cave and Clyde will air their dirty laundry in court Aug. 26.

Contact Shelley Smith at 704-797-4246.