User:Strandcellar/Sam Pocker

Sam Pocker (born 1977 in New York, New York) is an American conceptual artist, known for his work on "The Retail Anarchy Project". Pocker works in an ambiguous style which he has been quoted as being inspired by artists such as Jenny Holzer, Louise Lawler, Lynne Cohen, and the rock band Pavement.

Career
Pocker attended The School of Visual Arts and Parsons School for Design.

In 2004 Pocker began work on a piece titled "YMMV Radio", a response to the heightened state of consumerism in the United States. The internet-based radio program began with Pocker on a cell phone plugged into a computer taking calls from listeners. Shortly thereafter, Pocker's fiancée appearing under the pseudonym "Shopz" and one of Pocker's supposed associates named "Alex" began to appear regularly on the program. In 2005 the program transferred to the then-new podcast format and Pocker added imaginary characters who were voiced by himself and "Shopz". These characters also began to appear in cryptic YouTube videos featuring puppets named "Hero"(a teddy bear) and "Steve"(a hand-puppet of a monkey) among others. Around this time Pocker himself also began to appear in YouTube videos demonstrating how to use coupons in various ways. Pocker was quoted as saying that the project had nearly two dozen characters in all.

This piece was then adapted into a live performance artwork in which Pocker referred to himself as a "Stand-Up Economist" and premiered at the HOPE convention in 2006. During these performances Pocker would berate the audience for their adoption of consumerism and then quickly follow up with a self-depreciating joke. Pocker would show films of the puppets as his opening act, tell grandiose stories about buying merchandise with coupons, and then end the piece with a contextual story about how consumerism was causing cultural problems that he did not know how to deal with. During this first performance, Pocker was on stage moments after Steve Rambam was arrested and recieved considerable attention as a result. He would repeat the performance in a few other cities through the end of 2007, with a final presentation in Miami, Florida at a convention for the coupon industry.

In 2007 Pocker wrote and produced "Your Mileage May Vary", a documentary film about coupon shopping culture in the United States. The film follows his ambiguous style, leaving the audience unsure if the work is intended to be serious or farcical. In 2008, using the cast members from "YMMV Radio", Pocker released a DVD version of the film with a commentary track explaining some of the material, yet it remains to be known if even this commentary track is intended to be taken seriously or as a parody.

Later that year, Pocker launched a website titled "Retail Anarchy" which features photographs of marketing campaigns or merchandise paired with a short caption. Occasionally Pocker posts an essay similar in style to his live performance work, the most notable ones being his review of Yankee Stadium and a similar review of the Buffalo Wild Wings chain. On August 6, 2009 Pocker announced via Twitter that "Retail Anarchy TV" would be appearing soon, and the following day an episode appeared on YouTube. A second episode appeared the following week on August 15th with the cryptic message "Friday Is Payday!"

Pocker's most famous work, "Retail Anarchy", a book about his exploits as a "Stand-Up Economist" was released in 2009 by Running Press. Shortly after it's release, Pocker appeared on NPR's "Morning Edition" and explained he was not concerned with anything except the cultural implications of marketing. The book has received attention for it's claims that many retailers may be attempting to bribe consumers with complimentary merchandise in order to increase the value of their stock price. Numerous reviewers have pointed to the fact that Pocker refers to the sterotype of a Cheesecake Factory employee as a "Slut", which Pocker has claimed is being taken out of context. Pocker compares his work to that of Naoimi Klein and Paco Underhill, although like his other works, readers are often confused if the work is intended to be serious or funny.

In 2009, Pocker announced he was working on new projects and considering "reinventing" himself in "another career that has no qualifications."