An exhibition in San Francisco’s Dogpatch neighborhood has works by women who call themselves “Pissed Off Moms.”
“There’s contradiction and tension that nobody wants to talk about when it comes to motherhood. It’s like, yeah, you love this person [i.e. your child] more than you possibly could, but at the same time, it’s thorny. It’s a lot of sacrifice and heartache,” says Krystal Lauk, a San Francisco artist who curated the show.
She adds, “I was just not prepared for the intensity and lifestyle change. A lot of the patriarchy and a lot of the stuff that’s wrong with the system really comes out in full when you experience it for yourself, and I was really grappling with that,” she says.
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San Francisco artist Krystal Lauk is pictured with her painting “Underwater,” which is featured in “Pissed Off Moms,” an art show she curated, running through Aug. 3 in Natasha Tsozik’s private fine art tattoo studio in San Francisco. (Jeff Kell via Bay City News) -
Krystal Lauk posted flyers around San Francisco—in cafés, at her son’s school, and on Dogpatch street poles—for her art show “Pissed Off Moms,” which opened July 5. (JL Odom/Bay City News ) -
Krystal Lauk networked and posted flyers around San Francisco—in cafés, at her son’s school, and on Dogpatch street poles—for her art show “Pissed Off Moms,” which opened July 5. (JL Odom/Bay City News ) -
L-R, “Pissed Off Moms” artist Simona Bunardzhieva, curator and artist Krystal Lauk and lettering artist and author Jessica Hische celebrate at the July 5, 2025 opening of Lauk’s group exhibition. (Jeff Kell via Bay City News) -
L-R, Krystal Lauk, curator of “Pissed Off Moms,” poses with Piccino Executive Chef Daniella Banchero, who inspired the painting “Sou Mother.” (Krystal Lauk via Bay City News) -
Krystal Lauk greets guests at Natasha Tsozik’s San Francisco fine art studio at the opening of the group exhibition “Pissed Off Moms.” Lauk hopes to expand on the show with discussion panels and more art shows in the city. (Jeff Kell via Bay City News)
Lauk organized the show—which is in Natasha Tsozik’s private fine art tattoo studio through Aug. 3—during a time of self-realization in which she rekindled her passion for painting. She had gone through a divorce, moved to a new neighborhood and was feeling burned out as a brand illustrator and designer for tech companies. She also wondered how artificial intelligence would affect her work and agency, Lauk Haus.
“I was just like, ‘You know what? I’m going to spend some time painting after not doing it for 10 years.’ … I started painting and going through all of these experiences that I needed to that were at the heart of my desire, because I hadn’t followed that for a really, really long time,’ she says.
A handful of her numerous paintings were of mothers she observed in the city. A friend called them “pissed off mom” paintings, and the reference stuck.
“Sou Mother” is her depiction of Daniella Banchero, executive chef at Piccino, standing with her child in the restaurant’s open kitchen.
“I looked up and there she was, barking out the orders and cleaning out the plates, all while holding her toddler. And it just occurred to me: ‘Mothers are so badass.’ We need—and have—our edge, but a lot of it is so invisible and cloaked under these weird, old stereotypes,” Lauk says.
“It was one of my first ‘pissed off moms’ paintings, and I gave it to her, which was a really cool thing. And then I continued to do more of those paintings, because it just felt good,” she adds.
Another, titled “Underwater,” came from seeing a woman with her child near the Steinhart Aquarium in the California Academy of Sciences in Golden Gate Park.
“She just had this dead stare, looking at the tropical fish while nursing her baby. And I was like, ‘Wow. I feel you. You were under the water,’” says Lauk.
“Big Hug” depicts Lauk with her arm around her son, who’s wearing a light blue, long-sleeved shirt with outlines of roses with perceptible thorns, and hugging her back.
“My piece is about my promise to accept and embrace all the parts of my son as he grows—thorns and all,” she explains.
Lauk’s flyers for “Pissed Off Moms” posted around the city feature the “Big Hug” image and the phrase “an art show by your local mom.”
In developing the show, Tsozik oversaw administration while Lauk found local mothers interested in sharing their paintings, photography, sculptures and other creative works.
“We really wanted to give artists the space to show that motherhood contains multitudes. It’s not just a stereotype of serenity as used to be portrayed. The art pieces and personal artist statements to set a context to experience them prove it 100%,” says Tsozik.
At the show’s opening on July 5, the studio was packed with guests and artwork by 18 Bay Area mothers: Elizabeth Barelli, Émeline Brulé, Simona Bunardzhieva, Angela Chu, Nathalie Da Costa Ferro, Rachelle Derouin, Natalie Dunnege, Lisa Fugere, Irene Kaoru, Meg MacLeod, Maia Piccagli, Christine Rhee, Lily Sloane, Rebecca Szeto, Ruochen Wang, Melissa Willett, Olga Zalite and Lauk.
Lauk, wearing a “Pissed Off Mom” black hat, greeted visitors at the door, while the artists, spouses and friends checked out the show, posed for photos and conversed. Children weaved in and out of the crowd, exploring and at times looking for their moms.
Lauk envisions “Pissed Off Moms”—which will close Aug. 2 with a reception (details to be announced)—expanding to other locations with more mother-artists and perhaps incorporate discussion panels down the road.
“I think I’m finding ways to pivot, [and] I’m looking for ways that I can apply my experiences in tech and building these giant brand illustration systems meaningfully,” she says, adding, “You have to do what’s aligned with your heart.”
For more information about visiting “Pissed Off Moms,” email hello@natashatsozik.com.
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