How to Write an Artist’s CV When You Don’t Have Much (Or Any!) Professional Experience

Listing exhibitions on your artist’s CV / artist’s resume when you don’t have any, or have very few

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 aspects 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!

• DO list all of your exhibitions, even if they aren’t in a gallery
• DO list all of your forthcoming exhibitions and projects
• DON’T make anything up.
  
  

Example of a good formatting for an exhibition list

2022  Group exhibition, Vancouver Art Gallery (forthcoming)
2021  Site-specific installation, “Alleyway”, Vancouver, BC

2018  Solo exhibition, Moon Cafe, Vancouver BC

Example of a bad formatting for an exhibition list

2023 Planned gallery exhibition (forthcoming) <– if you don’t have any solid details, don’t include it

2012  Solo exhibition, Museum of Modern Art, NY <– you made that up!

 

Listing collections on your artist’s CV / artist’s resume when you don’t have any, or have very few

Refer to point 5 from the original article. If you are a 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 there

Example of good formatting for a collection list

Collections:

Private collection, Vancouver BC

Private collection, Winnipeg MB

Private collection, New York NY

Example of bad formatting for a collection list

Collections:

Anna van Gogh

Theodorus van Gogh

Elisabeth van Gogh

Theo van Gogh

Private collection, Paris France

Private collection, Paris France

Finally, if you’re an emerging artist and you still don’t have enough to put on your artist’s CV / artist’s resume

You can think of some creative ways to visually enhance your CV:

1. Include an image of your artwork (not usually recommended, but between that and the blank page, one image is better).
2. 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.
3. 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.
   
   

Planning to sell your artwork over email? Presentation and professionalism matters! Check out our templates for managing and emailing your available artworks.