New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA) staff read thousands of artist statements a year. Here is their advice on what to do, and what not to do.
The artist statement. Frequently required in residency applications, project proposals, and grant applications, creating this document can be a pain point for artists who want to get it just right. The goal is to get to the heart of who you are creatively, and how that informs your work. It gives you the opportunity to sell your work and ideas, which is not something that comes naturally to a lot of artists.
NYFA Staff members are no strangers to the artist statement, collectively reviewing thousands of statements a year. Here, they share five things they like to see in artist statements, and five pet peeves.