The post How to Write an Artist CV in 10 Steps is the most popular in the history of The Practical Art World. Some of the most frequently asked questions people have after reading it are “What if I don’t have an exhibition history?” or “What if I didn’t go to school?”
For new and emerging artists, creating an artist’s CV can be a bit of a Catch 22. You don’t have much or any experience to put on your CV, but to apply for “experience” in the form of exhibitions, grants, and schooling, you are asked to provide a CV.
Fortunately, there are ways to tailor what relevant experience you have into an artist’s CV format. Just remember: don’t lie, and don’t make up anything that doesn’t exist. Just tell the truth, shaping it a little (creatively– it’s what you do best, right?) into the established CV format. If you haven’t already read How to Create an Artist’s CV in 10 Steps, start there. Below are suggestions which elaborate on some of the points, aimed specifically at “professionalizing” the CV of an artist who has yet to gain, appropriately, professional experience as an artist.
Refer to point 1 in the original article. As I mentioned, many established artists keep this section quite short. However, if you don’t have a lot of other material and experiences to add to the rest of the CV, this is a good opportunity to tell your reader about yourself. Adding a very brief bio / artist statement can be good if you would like to talk about experiences which don’t fit into the rest of the CV. If you are going to do this, just remember to keep it brief and concise.
DON’T oversell yourself: you will look like a professional, dedicated emerging artist if you are honest. You will look desperate if you pretend to be something you are not.
Example of bad contact details:
Vincent van Gogh~Sometimes called the world’s most famous artist~!!!Check out my work here http://www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/auth/gogh/Email me! fancypants@yahoo.com<
Example of good contact details
Vincent van GoghBorn March 30, 1853Currently lives and works in Paris, France
vincent@vangogh.com | www.vangoghgallery.comVincent van Gogh is an emerging artist, working primarily in oils. He often employs bold colours and emotive tableaux in a post-impressionistic manner.
EDUCATION
Refer to point 2 in the original article. Many emerging as well as professional artists are self-taught, and yet for some reason the education section of a CV tends to be intimidating for all but those who have a Masters degree. It doesn’t have to be that way.
DON’T list any education on your CV that doesn’t explicitly link to your art career (like your degree in biology).
Example of a good education history, for those who did not attend “art school” or university
Education
Studied under:
Lynne McLaughlin
Tom Backlund
Geoff Parker
Example of a bad education history, for those who did not attend “art school” or university
Education
One hour workshop with Lynne McLaughlin
Informal classes with Tom Backlund
Has received feedback from Geoff Parker
Bachelor of Science, Biology major
EXHIBITIONS
Refer to point 3 from the original article.
One way to add exhibitions to your CV is to list any which are forthcoming. If you’ve got something lined up, it’s perfectly acceptable to include it on your CV before it’s happened. Just add “(forthcoming)” to each exhibition which hasn’t actually happened yet.
Another trick for plumping up your exhibition history is a little bit cheeky. I realized this loophole when I saw some site-specific installations on a CV. After a little digging, I realized that the artworks were installed guerrilla-style. In other words, someone made art and put it somewhere without invitation or the formal facets of a traditional exhibition. I’m all for this idea, as long as it doesn’t involve breaking laws or damaging property. It’s a great idea to show your artwork (though, you might not be able to get it back), and certainly an artistic project that can be added to your CV under your exhibition history. Just make sure you classify it properly, as to not mislead anyone!
DON’T make anything up.
Example of a good exhibition list
2014 Group exhibition, Vancouver Art Gallery (forthcoming)
2012 Site-specific installation, “Alleyway”, Vancouver, BC2010 Solo exhibition, Moon Cafe, Vancouver BCExample of a bad exhibition list
2016 Planned gallery exhibition (forthcoming) <– if you don’t have any solid details, don’t include it2012 Solo exhibition, Museum of Modern Art, NY <– you made that up!
COLLECTIONS
Refer to point 5 from the original article. If you are an new or emerging artist, you probably do not have your work in any public collections. Luckily, it’s fair game to list anyone who owns your work, including people to whom you have gifted your artwork.Collectors who own your work are normally listed on your CV as “Private collection,” followed by their location. You should not actually name someone unless they have explicitly agreed to be listed as a collector of your work, and / or if you have some other reason to do so (for example, they are a very well-known collector).
DO make a list of people who own your work, even if they didn’t actually purchase it; most of these you can convert to “Private collection,” followed by location
DON’T put your Mom’s name on the list, or anyone with the same last name as you
DON’T list a city more than once if more than one person owns your work thereExample of a good collection list
Collections:Private collection, Vancouver BCPrivate collection, Winnipeg MBPrivate collection, New York NY
Example of a bad collection listCollections:Anna van GoghTheodorus van GoghElisabeth van GoghTheo van GoghPrivate collection, Paris FrancePrivate collection, Paris FrancePrivate collection, Paris France
FINALLY, IF YOU HAVE AN ESPECIALLY SHORT CV AND THINGS ARE LOOKING DESPERATE
You can think of some creative ways to visually enhance your CV:
- Include an image of your artwork (not usually recommended, but between that and the blank page, one image is better).
- Center your text with large margins. Yes, this is cheating when you’re writing an essay. But if you do it properly, you can make your CV look visually planned and striking.
- Include an artist statement and CV on one single page. Often these are asked for separately, but if you are able to combine them, it’s a great way to make your presentation look great.
Images:
The Best of The Practical Art World
I’m very happy to share that this November, The Practical Art World surpassed 200,000 visits! Over the past year and a half, we have enjoyed your generous feedback, emails, comments, and questions. We love hearing that the articles posted here on the site have helped you as professional artists, so THANK YOU!
In honour of the first 200,000 visitors to The Practical Art World, we’ve compiled a list: ”The Best of The Practical Art World.” For those of you have been with us since the beginning, consider it a trip down memory lane. For new friends, enjoy a look back at some of our most popular articles.
10. Which Gallery Should I Submit To?
8. How to Build a Contract for Commissioned Artworks
7. Editioned Prints and Photographs: How Many, What Value?
6. Choosing Hardware to Hang Artwork
5. Wrapping Artwork for Shipping: Paintings on Canvas or Panel
4. Art Gallery Submissions: How to Prepare and What to Send
3. How to Create a Press Release for your Art Exhibition
2. How to Write an Artists CV in 10 Steps
1. How to Label Artworks in an Exhibition
5 Places to Find Free Art Education & Inspiration
1. Art Supply Manufacturers
Many artist-grade product manufacturers offer loads of free information about how to use their products. Much of this information can be applied to your studio practice in general, even if you don’t end up purchasing their product. The highest quality artist materials manufacturers tend to have the most in-depth and thorough material; their commitment to artists is obvious.
Winsor & Newton
Winsor & Newton makes a large assortment of artist-quality paints and painting accessories. Visit their Resource Centre for instructional videos, Continue reading
10 Weeks to Improve your Artistic Career – Week 6
Week 6: Get your paperwork in order.
If you have ever submitted your artwork to an exhibition, gallery or contest, you probably already know that beyond your artwork, you are also responsible for providing specific paperwork relating to your artistic practice. The most common paperwork requests are for an artist statement, an artist CV, and a short written biography.
If you have these three items prepared in advance, you can update them regularly and save yourself a lot of stress when trying to meet a submission deadline. In general, they are great things to have on hand even if you are not submitting your work, as collectors, curators, or writers could ask to see them at any time. Continue reading
10 Ways to Improve your Artistic Career – Week 3
Week 3: create a structured project
One of the best ways to get yourself thinking and working creatively is to do it regularly and frequently, and soon it becomes second-nature.
It can often be difficult to set aside time for creative endeavours, or to become motivated to work on things. A fantastic and simple way to overcome these deterrents is to create structured, time-based creative project for yourself.
In setting up a structured project, you have many different options. The key is to create a project where you’ve already set up specific parameters for what you are going to work on, and also one that it requires you to work regularly. Some examples of a time-based, structured creative project are: Continue reading
Approaching a Gallery: The Initial Email (an Example of What to Send)
At any point in an artist’s career, they many begin to seek out representation from a commercial gallery. This has several benefits for the artist, including more exposure, a better venue to show work (presumably), less self-marketing, and hopefully more sales (if that is what the artist is after).
As many galleries are quite established and receive numerous submissions constantly, it can be tricky for artists to get a good “foot in the door.” The best first step is to do your research and approach a gallery to see if they are actually accepting submissions. This is best done with a respectful, polite email (with a link to your portfolio cleverly inserted).
Example of a good initial email:
For the attention of the curator,*
I am a Vancouver artist seeking representation** locally. I am writing to inquire if you are currently accepting submission proposals. If so, could you please let me know which format or materials you prefer.
Best,
Your Name
http://www.yourwebsiteaddress.com***
The key points in this email are: Continue reading
How to Create a Press Release for your Art Exhibition
You have an art exhibition coming up. Great! Depending on the venue, the staff might take care of the press release for you. Excellent! But, if you find yourself in an exhibition with no promotional machine at work already, you need to make sure that your show gets the attention it deserves. Different from an invitation, a press release contains background information about the artist, the work, and the show. It is targeted to members of the press who may want to check out, write about, or even review your show. That having said, you can also send your press release to clients, gallerists, curators, or anyone you think might be interested in knowing more about your work.
What should the press release include?
Image
Your press release should feature one image from your show. There are no rules for choosing an image, but it is usually good to choose a piece which is representative of the entire show either visually or thematically. The image on your press release should be large enough to view easily, don’t use a thumbnail image. It is all about the art after all, right?
Information
The information for your press release should contain four main parts: Continue reading
Suggestions for Writing your Artist’s Statement
I purposely did not call this post “how to write an artist’s statement.”
Because the answer is, there is no definitive right or wrong way to write an artist’s statement. The main purpose of an artist’s statement is to augment your artistic practice. This could be by offering background information, an explanation of your process, or any other information that will enhance the critical understanding of your work. Below are some suggestions to consider:
- Why are you writing an artist’s statement? A good place to start is to consider who you are writing to, and what you want to tell them. If your artist’s statement is requested in a submission, you probably want to offer practical background information on your process, making it easy for whoever is considering your work to readily understand where you are coming from. If you have decided to write an artist’s statement to accompany an exhibition of your work, Continue reading
