The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

PAGE 6 OCTOBER 2008 NEWSLETTER WRITING THE ARTIST'S STATEMENT As you know, the NSAG has a Biobook containing many member artist statements and pictures of the artists' work. Artist statements are an important marketing tool, and especially for those artists who are interested in placing their art in the public arena, having an up-to-date artist statement is very important. With all our new NSAG members coming on board and those members whose last artist statement was written many years ago, here are some thoughts adapted from other artists and art educators on what should be in an artist statement. From Amanda Linn: To Get your Brain Going List individual words or short phrases that come to mind when asked these questions: - - - - - - - - - What is your favourite art material? Why? How would you describe your artwork in an e-mail? Besides the work of other artists, what influences your artwork? What do you like best about being an artist? Why do you make art? What is most challenging about being an artist? How do you begin a piece of artwork? What does it mean when you say a piece of artwork "turned out really well"? What do you want others to feel or think when they see your artwork? Artist's Statement Frameworks These frameworks will help you mould the words and thoughts from above into document form. Each paragraph should have 3 to 5 sentences. Most artists' statements are one page. Write in first person present tense: 1 am" NOT `1 was"; "I do" NOT "I did". Paragraph 1- Why do you do the work you do? Support your statement telling the reader more about your goals and aspirations. Paragraph two- Tell the reader how you make decisions before, during, and after the artwork is created. How and why do you select materials, techniques and themes? Keep it simple and BE SPECIFIC. Paragraph 3- Tell the reader a little more about your current work. How did this work grow out of prior artwork or life experiences? What are you exploring, attempting or challenging by doing this work? Helpful Hints - - - - - - If you have trouble writing about yourself, write about an artist you admire. Then write about yourself from that point of view. Begin writing as if you were talking to someone about your art Have a friend ask you questions about your artwork. Take notes as you answer the questions Have someone who is not familiar with your artwork read your statement and ask you questions Create a statement that makes the reader want to look at and know more about your artwork Your statement should be more than just a description of your art and/or art process P.O. Box 91051 West Vancouver, B. C. V7V 3N3 Serving Visual Artists from Furry Creek to Deep Cove since 1947