artist bio
Patrick Conlon is the quintessential smart talking, street walking surfer, artist, marketer, and Epstein’s Bar owner from Rockaway, New York City. He grew up surfing the waters of the Rock and sneaking into punk rock shows in the 1980’s. These beginnings led him to move to SoCal get his degree from U.S.C. In between classes, he started an industry surf ‘zine that chronicled lifestyles, music, and trends in beach culture and vibe. The zine endeavor had a profound effect on what would become the basis of his art, the art making process and his understanding of the power of a sticker.
It wasn’t until he moved back to New York City in the late 90’s and began to explore materials that his ideas of packaged slick and iconographic messaging began to evolve. His process is more from an advertising standpoint, in which he prints his pieces onto vinyl, much like the ad signage you’d see ratchet strapped to the side of a building.
“I want my paintings to encompass the lifestyle of a surfer or musician, in the way that it’s adaptable, fun, creative, and it’s overall, searching for the next newest and coolest thing.”
Pat “Slickie” Conlon has a genuine knack for selecting direct and powerful icons in his graphic illustrations and he is a master surfer. His experience risking his life on the water makes it easy for him to make strong confident decisions in his art making. This is essential… no pussyfooting here. His mastery is not limited to surfing the motherf*cker can draw! So pay attention because none of those drips are accidental.
- Tom Sachs