I am constantly approached by artists to review their artist statement. Artists find it challenging to write about their work and present themselves. I can only think that this is because there is no real guide to how to do it. The sad truth is: most people don’t read artist statements because most of them are dull, generic, complex, or all three. Despite this, you will need one. People want to understand what you are doing, and why you are doing this. It’s also your chance to enforce your branding.
If you are not sure if your artist statement is good enough, here is a good way to test it: Get other people to read it. The trick is to have them read it, then ask them if they can summarize what your work is about. If they can’t, you have failed. If they can repeat your core message, you have succeeded.
If you feel like to need to improve it, there are two ways to create an artist statement:
The first approach is unconventional. Art schools and teachers have put so much emphasis on creating an artist statement that artists shy away from the process. When working with artists I recommend them to just write it down without thinking about it too much. To get in the right frame of mind, try the following scenario: Imagine we met yesterday briefly in the subway and introduced ourselves. I ask you to forward some images of your work and give you my email. The next day you sit down and attach a PDF with your images. This experiment starts with what you actually write in the body of the email. Start with:
“Hi Magnus, Good to meet you yesterday in the subway. I attached a PDF with some images. My work deals with …Hope you like it. Yours, Florence”
I am very keen on this mental role-playing approach. Don’t use more than 50–100 words to complete the sentence in the email, and it will all fall into place.
The second way is more structured and helps you in focusing your ideas. I spoke with Jerry Saltz about this many times and he agrees that most artist statements are too complicated. So follow these three steps I explain in this video which is part of my class (but I uploaded it to youtube)
If you follow this approach, most artists were able to write a great artist statement in less than 20 minutes. I also present best practice and worst practice examples to give you a better idea of what you look out for. If you want to improve your artist statement, sign up now. And remember: I offer a 15 days money-back guarantee if you don’t find my content useful.
P.s. My online class helps artists to sell more artworks. It’s based on my teaching at Ivy League Universities and 20 years of experience in the art market. And the best art market experts contributed to the class. The class has helped thousands of artists around the world, in every medium and age group. Find out more and sign up to my free masterclass by clickling on the link below.
