Writing an Artist’s Statement

It’s extremely important to be self-aware as an artist.

We should always be thinking about our processes, our decisions, our strengths and weaknesses, and our prejudices. Knowing these things will help us learn from our mistakes and use our strengths to their fullest advantage.
Grades 3-5 write artist statements with almost every project.  2nd grade will start soon and in k-1, we just talk about it.  Here are some suggestions that the students use to get started. 

•     Title of the Piece – this alone helps the viewer understand the subject or makes him/her think about the work in a different way
•    The process I used was….. (Describe the artwork, including the medium, subject matter, and inspiration.)
•    My artwork was inspired by (whom or what?)
•    What happened along the way? (Did anything interesting or unusual happen? Did I solve any problems in the process? Did I change my approach to doing the project? etc.)
•    Did the project turn out how I expected? Why or why not?
•    What did I learn through the art project?
•    What would I do differently next time?
•    This piece is important to me because….
•    Which elements and principals did you use?.
•    I know when I’m doing a good job because…
•    I solved one problem I had by……
•    I planned my piece and then changed it by……
•    This project helped me learn…..
•    My favorite part is……
•    Is there a story or personal reason for making this piece of art that you’d like to share?
•    Do you know anyone else who uses this technique? medium? style? subject?
•    I like making art because…..

"I wrote my name and wondered, "How can I make it different from my other zentangles?"

"You can see some circles in this drawing.  I like to improvise."  

"It was hard so I was surprised when it came out good."

"I drew a cheeseburger in my zentangle to show what I love to eat."