What is a Artist Statement – An artist statement is a not-too-long series of sentences that describe what you make and why you make it. The very basic elements of an artist statement; what, why, and how.
What is the length of a Artist Statement – 200 Words. Two paragraphs or 150 to 200 words is the best length for a statement that is going to be published. It is long enough to let the viewer learn more about you and your work, but not too long that they can’t follow your story and get distracted.
What type of format do you use for an Artist Statement – Single Space, No more than 10 to 12 size point type, no tricky fonts, a general introduction to your work, a body of work, final paragraph should recapitulate the most important points in the statement.
Audience: Who, What Level, What Understanding? – Intended for a wide variety of people who you try to have understand your work without using unnecessary and fanciful words. Try to avoid using specific terms and knowledge that people might not fully understand since that may discourage them from your work.
What is it used for? – An artist statement is used for getting your message across. It is important to remember ” What are you trying to say in the work?” ” What influences my work?” “How do my methods of working (techniques, style, formal decisions) support the content of my work?” and lastly does any images pop up or relate when reading the statement.
Tone and Style, Vocabulary – Emotional Tone, Theoretical (but not over-the-top), Humorous, and clear and direct, concise and to the point. While the style of your Artist Statement should be honest. Try to capture your speaking voice. Avoid repetition of phrases and words. Organization of detail is important . Significant ideas should be at the end of each sentence for emphasis.
Examples – This is a short artist statement by Sam Durant. He talks about his artwork That references American history and explores the varying relationships between popular culture and art.
My artwork takes a critical view of social, political and cultural issues. Often referencing American history, my work explores the varying relationships between popular culture and fine art. Having engaged subjects as diverse as the civil rights movement, southern rock music and modernist architecture, my work reproduces familiar visual and aural signs, arranging them into new conceptually layered installations. While I use a variety of materials and processes in each project my methodology is consistent. Although there may not always be material similarities between the different projects they are linked by recurring formal concerns and through the subject matter. The subject matter of each body of work determines the materials and the forms of the work. Each project often consists of multiple works, often in a range of different media, grouped around specific themes and meanings. During research and production new areas of interest arise and lead to the next body of work.
