Pia Stern Art
American, b. 1953
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
(Biography provided by JOSEPH GROSSMAN FINE ART)
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Midnight Reach
By Pia Stern
Located in San Francisco, CA
This artwork titled "Midnight Reach" c.1990 is in an original color monoprint on Wove paper by noted American artist Pia Stern, b. 1953. It is hand signed, t...
Category
Late 20th Century Abstract Expressionist Pia Stern Art
Materials
Monoprint
Full Moon
By Pia Stern
Located in San Francisco, CA
This artwork titled "Full Moon" 1995 is in an original pastel on paper by noted American artist Pia Stern, b. 1953. It is hand signed, dated and titled by th...
Category
Late 20th Century Abstract Expressionist Pia Stern Art
Materials
Pastel
Acropolis Dream II
By Pia Stern
Located in San Francisco, CA
This artwork titled "Acropolis Dream II" 1994 is in an original color monoprint on paper by noted American artist Pia Stern, b. 1953. It is hand signed, date...
Category
Late 20th Century Abstract Expressionist Pia Stern Art
Materials
Monoprint
Self Portrait I
By Pia Stern
Located in San Francisco, CA
This artwork titled "Self Portrait I" 1994 is in an original color monoprint on paper by noted American artist Pia Stern, b. 1953. It is hand signed, dated a...
Category
Late 20th Century Abstract Expressionist Pia Stern Art
Materials
Monoprint
Acropolis Dream I
By Pia Stern
Located in San Francisco, CA
This artwork titled "Acropolis Dream I" 1994 is in an original color monoprint on paper by noted American artist Pia Stern, b. 1953. It is hand signed, dated...
Category
Late 20th Century Abstract Expressionist Pia Stern Art
Materials
Monoprint
Self Portrait III
By Pia Stern
Located in San Francisco, CA
This artwork titled "Self Portrait III" 1994 is in an original color monoprint on paper by noted American artist Pia Stern, b. 1953. It is hand signed, dated...
Category
Late 20th Century Abstract Expressionist Pia Stern Art
Materials
Monoprint
Night Passage
By Pia Stern
Located in San Francisco, CA
This artwork titled "Night Passage" 1994 is in an original color monoprint on paper by noted American artist Pia Stern, b. 1953. It is hand signed, dated and...
Category
Late 20th Century Abstract Expressionist Pia Stern Art
Materials
Monoprint
Self Portrait II
By Pia Stern
Located in San Francisco, CA
This artwork titled "Self Portrait II" 1994 is in an original color monoprint on paper by noted American artist Pia Stern, b. 1953. It is hand signed, dated ...
Category
Late 20th Century Abstract Expressionist Pia Stern Art
Materials
Monoprint
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Pia Stern art for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a wide variety of authentic Pia Stern art available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Pia Stern in monoprint, crayon, pastel and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 20th century and is mostly associated with the abstract style. Not every interior allows for large Pia Stern art, so small editions measuring 15 inches across are available. Pia Stern art prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $800 and tops out at $1,400, while the average work can sell for $850.