You know what I’m talking about.

In my Magnetic You course, I walk you through a journaling process for writing your artist statement. The format I’ve created asks you questions that make it easy to collect words that will contribute to your statement and other marketing material.

Once it’s written, you have to edit it. And you always want to be improving your artist statement.

Tips for Editing Your Artist Statement

Here are 5 things to look out for in the editing process.

1. Don’t say your art is unique.

“Unique” doesn’t mean anything and, odds are, your work isn’t. Almost all art is derivative of informed by other work and anyone who knows art history can point to an artist who did it first place your art in that context.

But your work does have qualities that make it yours rather than someone else’s. Instead of using the word “unique,” describe your work in a way that makes the reader think it’s unique.

2. Remove the things that every artist says.

I see these phrases in so many statements that they put me straight to sleep. Do NOT use these in any version in your statement.

• I am excited by . . .
• I’ve always been an artist
• I have to make art
• My work is about the human condition

And my favorite phrase to eliminate in a statement . . .

• I love . . .

3. Beware of redundancy.

Say it one way and move on.

Don’t drag it out and duplicate the same meaning in a new sentence. Don’t make me be redundant by going any further with this warning.

4. Get rid of the lists.

One of the things I see in artist statements that makes me want to take a delete key to them is the overuse of adjectives. Lists of descriptors are a rampant virus in artist statements. Get rid of them!

If you have more than 2 or 3 commas in your statement, ask yourself what can be eliminated.

5. Reduce the number of personal pronouns.

You don’t need all of those I/me/my/mine/myself words in there. Really! I challenge you to get rid of most of them.

If you can clean up these 5 things, I promise you’ll have a better artist statement.

See also: The difference between your artist statement and your bio

Need more guidance?

I cover artist statements and other presentation material in depth in Magnetic You, an online course to help you become more attractive to buyers and collectors.

The post 5 Fast Fixes to Improve Your Artist Statement appeared first on Art Biz Success.

You will use language from your statement for wall labels, brochure text, website text, informal presentations, conversations and more.

The process of writing your statement – and it is a process – will help you gain clarity about your art. You should continually review and hone the language you use to talk or write about your art.

Answering three basic questions will get you on track for a stronger artist statement.

1. What do you want people to see in your work?
2. What is a distinguishing characteristic of your art?
3. Based on your conversations, what do people find delightful or surprising about your art?

Need more guidance?

I cover artist statements and other presentation material in depth in Magnetic You, an online course to help you become more attractive to buyers and collectors.

The post Rework Your Artist Statement with 3 Answers appeared first on Art Biz Success.

Here’s the big question: Is your statement on the RIGHT page on your site? Is it strategically placed next to the art? Or is it on a page entitled “Statement” by itself?

I’m not crazy about artist statement links in the main navigation menu of a website because most people have no idea what a statement is or why they would want to click on a link titled “Statement.”

The best place for your statement is next to the artwork that it relates to.

Remember that the essential criterion for a successful artist statement is that it makes people want to look at the work. It gives them clues about what to look for in your art, so you do your visitors a disservice if there’s no art next to your statement.

If you already have a Statement link in your navigation bar, don’t fret. Keep it active, but make it more relevant by adding artwork to your Statement page–if it’s not already there. Artwork should be on every page of your website. You want to exploit all opportunities to keep your images in front of people.

FINAL WORD:  When strategically placed next to your art, your successful artist statement illuminates your work and ideas–helping people make a closer connection.

Get help with your statement with The Relatively Pain-Free Artist Statement e-book journaling program.

PODCAST

The podcast is an audio version of this content.

[powerpress url=”http://artbizsuccess.com/audio/poststmt.mp3″]

The post Post Your Statement Strategically appeared first on Art Biz Success.

Did you close the file months ago thinking you were done with it? Think again.

Your statement has the potential to be one of your strongest promotional tools. A well-written statement empowers you. The process of writing or perfecting your statement is a chance to clarify your thoughts.

It helps you define your art before someone else does that for you.

Improving Your Artist Statement

Here are 5 tips for honing your statement.

1. Whittle down your statement to a maximum of two paragraphs—knowing that our attention spans are much shorter these days.

2. Your artist statement should reflect your current direction, particularly what is unique about the methods and materials you use to create your art work.

Do not include anything about your influences or past lives in your statement. Write about where you’re going and what you want viewers to take away. You want readers to focus on the future and where you’re headed, not the long story about how you got to where you are.

3. Allow time between your draft and editing of the draft. It is a good idea to step away from your writing for a few hours to see it with fresh eyes. It’s too easy to get bogged down in the language and miss the message.

4. In the editing process, look to eliminate redundancy as well as descriptions and sentences that could be applied to any ole artist’s work. You’re seeking the right words that describe with your artistic contribution.

5. Above all, your artist statement should compel readers to look at your art. If it doesn’t do that, it hasn’t done its job.

Your statement has failed if people read the words you’ve written, and then they go on to the next artist without being intrigued enough to take another look at your work.

FINAL WORD: Your artist statement should be organic. Allow it to grow and change. You wouldn’t allow your artwork to stagnate, would you? Likewise, using old words to describe new ideas doesn’t make sense. Get that statement out and start honing it.

PODCAST

The podcast is an audio version of this content.

[powerpress url=”http://artbizsuccess.com/audio/honestmt.mp3″]

The post 5 Tips for Improving Your Artist Statement appeared first on Art Biz Success.