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Conrad Bakker: Slacker Economy

Conrad Bakker
Untitled Project: VHS/Rental (Slacker), 2005
oil on carved wood
8 x 4 3/4 x 1 1/2 inches
detail

Conrad Bakker
Untitled Project: VHS/Rental (Slacker), 2005
folding table, 32 VHS tapes, poster, rental agreements (#'s 1001-1040)
oil on carved wood, paper
dimensions variable

Conrad Bakker
VHS-rental_b Untitled Project: VHS/Rental (Slacker), 2005
folding table, 32 VHS tapes, poster, rental agreements (#'s 1001-1040)
oil on carved wood, paper
dimensions variable
detail

Conrad Bakker
Untitled Project: eBay/Slacker: "Slacker Classic Funny Retro Old Skool T Shirt NEW," 2005
Oil on wood panel
4 1/2 x 5 1/2 inches

Conrad Bakker
Untitled Project: eBay/Slacker: "New Slacker T-shirt Medium," 2005
oil on wood panel
4 1/2 x 5 1/2 inches

Conrad Bakker
Untitled Project: eBay/Slacker: "'Slacker' Flip Flops Thongs New W/ Tags Mens'," 2005
oil on wood panel
4 1/2 x 5 1/2 inches

Conrad Bakker
Untitled Project: eBay/Slacker: "'Slacker' T-Shirt Size Large NWT," 2005
oil on wood panel
4 1/2 x 5 1/2 inches

Conrad Bakker
Untitled Project: eBay/Slacker: "'SLACKER- Retro 90's Gen X T-Shirt' Richard Linklater," 2005
oil on wood panel
4 1/2 x 5 1/2 inches

Conrad Bakker
Untitled Project: eBay/Slacker: "Slacker T Shirt NEW XL Reto Funk," 2005
oil on wood panel
4 1/2 x 5 1/2 inches

Conrad Bakker
Untitled Project: eBay/Slacker: "NWT AMERICAN EAGLE OUTFITTERS SLACKER SKULLCAP HAT," 2005
oil on wood panel
4 1/2 x 5 1/2 inches

Conrad Bakker
Untitled Project: eBay/Slacker: "Junk Food ringer t-shirt w/ Wimpy size Xsmall," 2005
oil on wood panel
4 1/2 x 5 1/2 inches

Conrad Bakker
Untitled Project: eBay/Slacker: "Vintage Slacker Logo Ringer T-shirt Classic Sz Med," 2005
oil on wood panel
4 1/2 x 5 1/2 inches

Conrad Bakker
Untitled Project: eBay/Slacker: "SLACKER T-SHIRT FUNNY RETRO PUNK COOL EMO XXXL 3X 3XL," 2005
oil on wood panel
4 1/2 x 5 1/2 inches

Conrad Bakker
Untitled Project: eBay/Slacker: "WIMPY POPEYE SLACKER ORIGINAL RINGER T SHIRT Sz L emo," 2005
oil on wood panel
4 1/2 x 5 1/2 inches

Conrad Bakker
Untitled Project: eBay/Slacker: "MEN's Novelty T-shirts/NWT/short sleeve/$18-$20," 2005
oil on wood panel
4 1/2 x 5 1/2 inches

Conrad Bakker
Untitled Project: Consumer Actions (Cross-stitch), 2004
digital durflex print
11 x 14 inches
edition of 5

Conrad Bakker
Untitled Object: Book/Bag (Empire/Borders), 2005
oil on carved wood
8 x 10 1/2 x 1 1/2

Conrad Bakker
Untitled Object: Post-it (Pay Fucking Attention), 2004
oil on carved wood
3 x 3 inches

Conrad Bakker
Unititled Object: Orange Peels, 2005
oil on carved wood
9 pieces, each approximately 1 1/2 x 1 1/2 inches

Conrad Bakker
Untitled Object: Ashtray (Bubblegum), 2001
oil on carved wood
6 3/4 x 6 3/4 x 1 1/2 inches

November 29 – January 07, 2006

Opening reception: December 10, 6–8 pm

Artist Talk: Artist and Kelly Baum, Assist. Curator of American and Contemporary Art, Blanton Museum of Art, 6:30 pm

Lora Reynolds Gallery is pleased to announce our first solo exhibition with conceptual artist, Conrad Bakker, entitled Slacker Economy.

Since 1997, Conrad Bakker has been making hand-carved and painted reproductions of consumer products as part of his Untitled Projects series. This exhibition will include new sculptural works made specifically for Austin. Untitled Project: VHS/Rental (Slacker) will include a video rental station (a fabricated table, wooden movie poster, and over 30 carved and painted VHS video tapes of the 1991 film Slacker by Austin-based filmmaker Richard Linklater). Also included will be Untitled Paintings: eBay/Slacker, a series of small paintings of ebay auctions that incorporate and capitalize on the term "slacker".

Though realistic in approach, Bakker's works are intentionally lacking in precision. The controlled clumsiness of the forms and painted surfaces suggest the artist's interest in something beyond mimicry. By superseding trompe l'oeil, the imperfect production methods emphasize the strangeness of hand labor in a world of mass produced goods.

The work in this exhibition focuses on subtle economic systems, or, "slacker economies," that function in passive opposition to the larger consumer driven economy. More slapstick than antagonistic, these faux networks function awkwardly as they both participate with and drift against the patterns of consumption. Bakker's work in this exhibition engages a range of economic sites – from video rental agreements to eBay auctions to thrift stores – as part of an ongoing investigation of a culture formed by consumption and dependent upon artifice.

Conrad Bakker lives and works in Urbana, Illinois. He is a faculty member of the School of Art and Design at the University of Illinois. His work has been shown in numerous exhibitions including the New Museum of Contemporary Art, New York, Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art, the Renaissance Society at the University of Chicago, Fargfabriken Center for Contemporary Art and Architecture, Stockholm, The Soap Factory, Minneapolis, Art in General, New York, Southern Exposure, San Francisco and his front lawn. In 2000, he received a Creative Capital Foundation project grant.

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