This artwork "Untitled" 1998 is in an original pastel on paper by noted American artist Pia Stern, b. 1953. It is hand signed and dated in pencil by the artist. The artwork size is 16 x 8 inches, framed size is 26.25 x 17.5 inches. Custom framed in a wooden silver frame, with off white matting and bevel. It is in excellent condition. The frame is in fair condition. It has some small scratches Please see pictures.
About the artist:
Pia Stern spent her junior year abroad in Aix-en-Provence, the town in the south of France where Paul Cézanne lived and worked. There she took her first painting course and felt instantly at home with her instructors’ philosophical and visual perceptions of the world.
Returning to UC Berkeley as a senior, she enrolled in the art program and was greatly influenced by several artists who were integral to the Bay Area Figurative Movement including Richard Diebenkorn, David Park, Joan Brown and most notably, Elmer Bischoff, with whom she worked very closely.
Stern is primarily a process painter, and is known for her exploration of symbolic language. As stated by noted author and art critic Sister Wendy Beckett in "Contemporary Women Artists:" “Pia Stern…has an unusual power of transforming her ‘dreams’ into our own…The artist seeks out the great secrets of the heart and bodies them forth.”
Using oil paints and drawing materials in an intuitive manner, she rarely approaches her work with a preconceived idea. She may put down a quick gestural stroke, a dab of color or a general shape, yet this is just a starting point for her. Like an archeologist, she approaches the canvas as if on a ‘dig’, adding and subtracting, waiting for the meaning of the piece to reveal itself through the mark making process.
Her work is held in galleries, museums, public and private collections nationwide, and has been critically acclaimed in newspapers, books and journal reviews. She has a studio in Little Italy in San Diego, and her work is currently represented in San Francisco at the SFMOMA Artists Gallery and The Elins Eagles-Smith Gallery, and in Honolulu by Fine Arts Associates.
EDUCATION
1978 University of California, Berkeley, M.F.A.
1977 University of California, Berkeley, M.A.
1975 University of California, Berkeley, B.A.
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2014 Blue Azul Gallery, La Jolla, CA
2008 The Lobby Gallery, 455 Market, San Francisco, CA
2007 Cheryl Pelavin Gallery, N.Y., N.Y.
Palette Café Art Gallery, Healdsburg, CA
2005 Elins Eagles-Smith Gallery, San Francisco, CA
2002 Elins Eagles-Smith Gallery, San Francisco, CA
2001 The Contemporary Museum of Honolulu, First Hawaiian Bank, Honolulu, HI
2000 The San Francisco Museum of Art Artist's Gallery, San Francisco, CA
1999 Erickson & Elins Gallery, San Francisco, CA
1997 Erickson & Elins Gallery, San Francisco, CA
1995 Erickson & Elins Gallery, San Francisco, CA
1993 Caplan Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
1992 Esther Saks Gallery, Chicago, IL
Arlene Lew Allen Gallery, Santa Fe, NM
1991 Monterey Peninsula Museum of Art, Monterey, CA
1990 Esther Saks Gallery, Chicago, IL
Andrea Ross Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
1989 Jeremy Stone Gallery, San Francisco, CA
1988 Esther Saks Gallery, Chicago, IL
1987 Jeremy Stone Gallery, San Francisco, CA
1985 Jeremy Stone Gallery, San Francisco, CA
1979 Both-Up Gallery, Berkeley, CA
TWO PERSON EXHIBITIONS
2018 Radiance: in conjunction with The Color of Light, Tenth Avenue Arts Center, San Diego, CA
2013 L Street Fine Art, San Diego, CA
2011 Jacqueline Lavenu Studio and Gallery, San Diego, CA
GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2019 Fall Selections from the Artists Gallery, SFMOMA, San Francisco, CA
2019 Juried Biennial, Cannon Art Gallery, Carlsbad, CA
2017 XXV Annual Juried Exhibition, La Jolla Athenaeum, La Jolla, CA
2013 Athenaeum Faculty Exhibit, La Jolla Riford Library, La Jolla, CA
2012 XXI Annual Juried Exhibition, La Jolla Athenaeum, La Jolla, CA
2011 Cannon Art Gallery Juried Biennial, Carlsbad, CA
2010 XIX Annual Juried Exhibition, La Jolla Athenaeum, La Jolla, CA Awarded Honorable Mention
SFMOMA Artists Gallery, San Francisco, CA
2006 The Contemporary Museum at First Hawaiian Center Tenth Anniversary Exhibition, Honolulu, HI
Bay Area Abstraction: A Current View, The Triton Museum of Art, Santa Clara, CA
2005 San Francisco International Art Expo, Fort Mason. San Francisco, CA
2004 Showcase 2004, Honolulu Academy of Art, Honolulu, HI
Contempo, Neiman Marcus, Honolulu, HI, benefit for Contemporary Museum of Honolulu, HI
Faculty Exhibition, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI
2003 Commitment to Excellence, Honolulu Japanese Chamber of Commerce, Honolulu, HI
25th Anniversary Invitational, SFMOMA Artists Gallery, San Francisco, CA
Mixed Media Miniature VI (MMM) Invitational, Kapi'olani Community College, Honolulu, HI.
The Curatorial Eye: Fifteen Perspectives, Sonoma Museum of Visual Art, Sonoma, CA
2002 Faculty Exhibition, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI
Mixed Media Miniature V Invitational, Koa Gallery, Kapi'olani Community College, Honolulu, HI
Enriched by Diversity: The Art of Hawai'i, Hawai'i State Art Museum, Honolulu, HI
2001 Drawn: Drawings by Artists of Hawaii, The Contemporary Museum of Honolulu, Honolulu, HI
1998 Commitment to Excellence, Honolulu Japanese Chamber of Commerce Annual Art Exhibition, Honolulu, HI
Archetypes & Architecture, 455 Market, San Francisco, CA
1997 Artists of Hawaii, The Honolulu Academy of Arts, Honolulu, HI
1996 Drawn Conclusions, Riverside Art Museum, Riverside, CA
ASOWB SAONPT, The Contemporary Museum, Honolulu, HI
Spirit and Ritual, Lizardi/Harp Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
1994 Selected Works, Carolyn J. Roy Gallery, New York, NY
Selected Works, Horwitch Lew Allen Galleries, Santa Fe, NM
1993 The Spiritual in Art, sponsored by The Parliament of Worlds' Religions, Chicago, IL
Diverse Expressions, Nestle Corporation, San Francisco, CA
1991 ZUNI CAFE, San Francisco, CA, September - December
355 Bryant, McKenzie, Rose & Holiday Development, San Francisco, CA
Caplan Gallery, Santa Monica, CA
1990 Selected Acquisitions/Recent Works, Jeremy Stone Gallery, San Francisco, CA
Bathers: Contemporary Images of the Summer Idyll, Louisville Visual Art Association, Louisville, KY
1988-1989 Small Works, Esther Saks Gallery, Chicago, IL
1988 Twelve Artists, Triton Museum of Art, Santa Clara, CA
Contra Costa Contemporary Collections, Hearst Art Gallery, St. Mary's College, Moraga, CA
1987 Jewish ThemesINorthern California Artists, Judah L. Magnes Museum, Berkeley, CA
Jeremy Stone Gallery, San Francisco, CA
The Right Foot Show, San Francisco International Airport, Exhibits Program, San Francisco, CA
Charles Shere: A Berkeley Humanist and His Collection, Berkeley Art Center, Berkeley, CA
1986 Bay Area Contemporary Art: A Jewish Perspective, The Jewish Community Museum, San Francisco, CA
On Paper, Jeremy Stone Gallery, San Francisco, CA
Shelter, Richmond Art Center, Richmond, CA
1984 Berkeley Art Center, Berkeley, CA
Anna Gardner Gallery, Stinson Beach, CA
1982 Critics' Choice, Eaton/Schoen Gallery, San Francisco, CA
1979 Both-Up Gallery, Berkeley, CA
1978 Stuart Gallery, Berkeley, CA
Invitational Show, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco, CA
M.F.A. Exhibition, University Art Museum, Berkeley, CA
1975 Worth Ryder Gallery, University of California, Berkeley, CA
Kaiser Center, Oakland, CA
Surface and Image, Walnut Creek Civic Center, Walnut Creek, CA
TEACHING & LECTURING
2017 Guest Lecturer, "A Fine Madness," Universidad Autonoma de Baja California, Ensenada
2014 Instructor, University of California at San Diego Extension, La Jolla CA (since 2006)
Instructor, The Art Academy of San Diego, San Diego, CA (since 2013)
2013 Instructor, The Athenaeum School of the Arts, La Jolla, CA (since 2006)
2008 Instructor, Outreach College, University of Hawaii at Manoa,Honolulu, HI
2007 Instructor, Outreach College, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, HI
Lecturer, Visual Arts Department, UCSD, La Jolla, CA
2006 Instructor, Outreach College, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, HI
2005 Instructor, Outreach College, University of Hawaii at Manoa, HI
Guest Lecturer, Copia, Napa, CA
Visiting Artist, The Oxbow School, Napa, CA
2001 Guest Lecturer, Museum of Contemporary Art at First Hawaiian, Honolulu, HI
1999-2005 Affiliate Graduate Faculty, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, HI
1999 Workshop, Hui No'Eau Visual Arts Center, Maui, HI
1996-1999 Lecturer, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, HI
1996 Visiting Faculty, Holy Names College, Oakland, CA
1995 Visiting Assistant Professor, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, HI
Guest Lecturer, Museum of Contemporary Art, Honolulu, HI
1992 Guest Lecturer, University Art Museum, University of California, Berkeley, CA
1991-1995 Visiting Faculty, Holy Names College, Oakland, CA
1990-1991 Visiting Faculty, Sonoma State University, Sonoma, CA
1988 Guest Lecturer, Interdisciplinary Art Class, sponsored by AT&T, Oakland, CA
Guest Lecturer, Graduate Seminar, CCAC, Oakland, CA
1986 Guest Lecturer, Skirball Museum, Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institution of Religion, Los Angeles, CA - Trustee Group
1983 Instructor, Drawing & Painting, Berkeley Child Art Center, Berkeley, CA
1978 Instructor, Beginning Drawing & Painting, ASUC, University of California, Berkeley
1977 Guest Lecturer, University Art Museum, University of California, Berkeley
1975-1976 Teaching Assistant for Elmer Bischoff, Advanced Painting & Drawing, University of California, Berkeley
1975 Instructor, Drawing & Painting, La Jolla Museum of Contemporary Art, La Jolla, CA
AWARDS
2007 Joan Mitchell Foundation Grant Nominee
1997 State Foundation for the Arts Purchase Award, Hawaii
1977-1978 Regent's Scholar, University of California, Berkeley
1976 Eisner Prize, University of California, Berkeley
1972 The Leo Marchutz School of Vision, Aix-en-Provence, France, Scholarship for Summer Study
2015 Art on 30th “Think Pink” Benefit Show, San Diego, CA
California Preservation Foundation Annual Youth Art Competition, San Diego, CA
2001 The National League of American Pen Women, 41st. Biennial Art Show, Honolulu, HI
1999 Art Maui 1999, 21st Annual Juried Exhibition, Maui, HI
