Although everyone publicly criticizes the word salad that is International Art English, some artists still secretly believe that their work will not be taken seriously unless they use it. We disagree. A clearly written artist statement helps galleries, art dealers, and potential collectors better understand you and your work. It provides background information that helps writers, critics, and curators to create articles, reviews, and exhibition materials. And it definitely helps jurors evaluating applications breathe a sigh of relief. If you are struggling to make your artist statement more accessible, here are some tips from our class, Essential Writing for Artists.
WRITING TIPS
✏️ Keep your sentences short. Clear writing should have an average sentence length of about 15 to 20 words.
✏️ Limit each paragraph to one idea. State this idea clearly and then go into more detail.
✏️ Avoid using specialized jargon. This does not necessarily mean using only simple words. It just means using words that your reader will understand.
✏️ Use active verbs. Unsure if a sentence is in the active voice? Just add the phrase “by zombies.” If it still makes grammatical sense, it is probably in the passive voice. For example:
- 🧟 Passive: A rare lithograph was discovered in the Archivist’s office …by zombies.
- 🖖🏼 Active: The Archivist discovered a rare lithograph in her office.
✏️ Get help. Sign up for our new, at-your-own-pace virtual writing class on artist statements!
GET HELP NOW
In this class, you will learn to articulate the ideas behind your work in an engaging, concisely written artist statement. As part of this class, you will gain access to an hour-long video presentation that walks you through the writing process, step-by-step. Once you submit your artist statement, you will receive content feedback and editing support from both Faith and Liz.