Basics on Writing an Artist's Statement

Basics on Writing an Artist's Statement
An artist statement is a necessary tool for reflection and explanation of an artist’s work. It is a constantly evolving piece of literature. It is modified as your focus evolves and when you change the focus in your work. It is a tool to help others understand your work more and a tool that helps your work to evolve. Putting together and reflecting upon your own thoughts and goals with your work would is a great reason for working on your artist statement as a piece of writing that is always growing and changing.
An artist's statement is also a good marketing tool. People who like your work want to know more about why you make it. Offering your audience more ways to connect with you increases their understanding in what you do. An artist's statement builds a compelling bridge between you and your audience. For the buying public, the artist's statement provides a better understanding of the work and more reasons to take your work home.
Working on an artist's statement can be difficult when the artist doesn’t really know why they are making art or what they want to communicate with their work. It is very difficult when you are starting out in art. For intermediate and advanced students it is very important to start finding a direction of their own. Often when someone starts thinking about their first artist statement, they will say because I like to make things, I like to paint, I love clay and how it feels, because its fun and pretty much other very superficial reasons. These reason really get down to yes it is enjoyable to create something. But it is very important to get your thoughts down about what you want to accomplish with your work and why you chose a particular subject matter or direction with your work.
The idea of a subject matter or focus in your work is a real starting point. Why did you chose to make work that was of a political nature, what are your concerns, what have you researched in that particular direction, or what do you know about the natural world and how does this illuminate your expression of nature in your work. It basically does get down to why do you chose to do what you do. The content of your work can be extremely weak and hard to really write about. Many students start out with ideas that are not so mature or are somewhat sophomoric in a way. Sometimes these ideas need to be left behind for something of a more personal nature or a subject they can really reflect their feelings in, leaves them room for growth, and has many avenues of research.
When you start to write a statement, every thought you ever had about your work needs to be systematically scribbled down. Free writing is helpful, try and write in a way your don’t really care about spelling or grammar, you just let your mind go free and write thoughts about the subject you are interested in. Then put it together using proper grammar and spelling. Do not fake it or you will end up with insubstantial or flowery words that are not true to why you make your work or what your work is about.

Edit the writing and then do more research on some of those thoughts. Research your subject matter past the superficial layer and understand it from many other angles then you may presently understand it. It is important to use your own words. But at the same time it is wise to look at artist’s statements from others working in a similar vein as you. Other statements from a historian, scientist, philosopher or any other discipline that may relate to the content in your work, can add meat to the content of your own statement. Of course if you do site another professional within or outside the field of art you need to site your source and quote them properly. Maybe there are parallel ideas that are a part of your thoughts on the why of what you do in your work.
The Outcome of this Venture
Your ability to write an artist's statement will improve with practice. There will generally be no remnants of your first artist statement a year after you write it. Just as your work grows and changes, so will your artist's statement. Your ideas will grow and new ideas will be added to your thoughts and new subject matter for your writing and your art will also add to your enjoyments and excitement about the creation of your work.

An artist's statement is not a resume, or a historical summary of your work, a critique or a list of accomplishments. Nor is it how the work is made, however technical considerations and material choice may be part of your statement. But the main meat of the statement should be reflective of what your work is about. An artist's statement is a reflection on your work, a personal revelation about your work, a psychological bridge between you and your audience and helps to illuminate some of your concerns that may not be right on the surface layer of your work. It is somewhat of a back door to the work that allows you and your audience to look at it from a more informed perspective. Introspection is the main tool you will use to start your statement and also even more of an important tool for you to have your ideologies to continue to evolve, which in turn makes your work evolve.
So the main outcome may be not really be an outcome at all, but as I said a continuing process of growth for you and your work.