Within the matter of a couple of weeks, my husband Tom was asked to offer for sale his beautiful handmade pens in two different shops in two different states. Along with his pens, personalized gift boxes & business cards, both venues also wanted him to send to them copies of his artist statement. Now, Tom can talk very articulately, even lyrically, about the exotic woods he uses, about his lathe & about why he makes pens, but he had never before put all of this down in writing. Cue the large pot of black coffee & several late-night hours in front of the word processor…
So what exactly is an artist statement? It is an essay, written by an artist in the first person & usually a single page in length, that tells prospective buyers certain pertinent information about the artist & his or her work. Stated positively, it is a wonderful opportunity for artists to share with the public what inspires them, why they are artists, what media & techniques they use & so forth. Stated negatively, it is a seemingly perverse punishment that strikes terror into the heart of many an artist, bringing back unpleasant memories of English comp homework assignments & requiring the sort of thoughtful, honest self-scrutiny that can be deemed either redundant – My work speaks for itself! – or discomfiting.
The good news is that there is much help to be had by simply inputting how to write an artist statement into any search engine. Art marketing books &, occasionally, how-to art magazines also give tips on writing them. Many years ago, I ran across a couple such articles, tore them out & filed them away. When it came time for me to write my own artist statement 15 or so years ago, they were invaluable resources; as they were, once again, the other day. (Just ask Tom.)
At what point do you need to write an artist statement? Certainly, if you have plans to offer your artwork for sale, you should prepare an artist statement. After all, its main purpose is to bridge the gap between your art & potential buyers by explaining the former to the later in terms that will hopefully resonate, thereby encouraging a purchase. So, if you don’t have one yet, now is the time to write one! Trust me, it will be a much more pleasant task without the mental image of a gallery-owner hovering over your shoulder, tapping her foot impatiently. (Just ask Tom.)
In fact, anytime after you’ve made the transition from copying to doing your own original artwork, a process discussed in an earlier blog, you can write your first artist statement. At the very least, this is a good time to do some research on what topics are to be covered so you can start thinking about what you will want to say when you actually sit down to write one.
If you’ve already written your artist statement, congratulations! However, do take it out from time to time to review & update it, when necessary. For instance, have you been working in a new medium recently or, perhaps, abandoned one that you previously used? Has your subject matter changed significantly over the years? Your artist statement is most effective when it accurately reflects the current nature of your work & your process.
Also, keep in mind that an artist statement is not the same thing as an artist biography, which is written in third person & contains different information. You may need a bio in addition to an artist statement if you are submitting a portfolio of your work to a gallery, for instance. Information on writing an artist bio is also available on the Internet.
Remember, your artist statement answers the big questions about you & your work – What are you doing? Why are you doing it? How do you do it? What do you hope to achieve by doing it? – in your voice. It speaks for you when you are not present to speak for yourself. And since you are the ultimate expert on your own artistic experience, only you can do this admittedly challenging, but ultimately, rewarding task. Once you are finished, though, along with the understandable sense of relief, you will also feel a tremendous sense of pride. If you don’t believe me… just ask Tom.