PR:

The Cartoon Art Museum is proud to present I Am Ten, the first in a series of spotlight exhibitions featuring the best and the brightest in the San Francisco Bay Area’s cartooning scene.

I Am Ten examines the comics of Lark Pien, whose works range from intimately scaled handmade books to standalone stories in mainstream publications. 2007 marks Pien’s tenth year in her exploration of the comics form. Through steady methodical experimentation, Pien’s style continues to distill itself, resonating with each story in attempt to produce a fine-tuned clarity. She hopes that this clarity may serve as a bridge from her private and personal world to that of the familiar, the vernacular and the universal.

Special to the I Am Ten exhibition is an ongoing installation piece by Pien. She will be painting her story Small Destructions on canvas throughout the month of September, with the work in progress on display for public viewing throughout. A film for the entire installation will debut in October.

About the artist:

Lark Pien graduated from California Polytechnic University in 1995 with a bachelors degree in architecture. Though she had an interest in comics at an early age, Pien did not make her first comic until 1997. She continued to work in the architectural industry while drawing comics, allotting more time to her artistic interests each year. In 2004, she received the Kim Yale Best New Talent Award from Friends of Lulu. In 2006, Pien officially adopted art as her full time career. She now enjoys her days (and nights) drawing illustrations, oil painting, and creating comics.

Pien’s handprinted minicomics include Mr. Boombha, Stories from the Ward, and the Long Tail Kitty series. She is the colorist for National Book Award Finalist and Printz Award Winner American Born Chinese, by Gene Yang. She spends half her time working in Oakland, and the other half working in San Francisco. Any halves remaining are devoted to her friends, family, food and travel.

1 COMMENT

  1. I first met Lark AT that very comic book museum.
    I was signing behind the table and she, with sketch book in hand, asked me to look at her work. Now ten years later, not only an Eisner nominee, but also her work is hung on the walls of that museum. GO GO LARK! Long live Long Tail Kitty!