I'm new to Art Fair Insiders, and fairly new to art fairs (last year was my first season. I am getting ready to apply for some really big shows (ACC Baltimore, Smithsonian, Cherry Creek, Krasl) and would love some feedback on my artist statement and jury images.
Here is my statement:
Each piece starts with loose wool, silk, and bamboo fibers and a sheer silk gauze. After dying the gauze and fibers, I layer wisps of fiber on the gauze, wet the layers, and work the piece by hand until the fibers interlock, migrate through the silk gauze, and shrink forming delicate yet durable fabric.
And my photos:
Any thoughts?
Thanks!
Sherri
Replies
Sherri,
Artists statements, while not always used or asked for, are essential. You have described How you do your craft but not Why you do your art. A good article on artist statements can be read at www.ArtBusiness.com. At the Homepages go to Articles' then Articles for Artists, then scroll down to "Your Artist Statement....." Good article. Also Manhattan Art International (www.manhattanarts.com) has famous artist statements.
Hope this helps.
John
Thanks, John!
I started with a more "artsy fartsy" kind of statement, but switched just the facts of how and why as that seems to be what juries are looking for. It's hard to say much of anything in just 100 characters.
I will bookmark the sites you mention for future reference. It looks like artbusiness.com has a wealth of information about all aspects of the business.
Sherri,
It is hard in 100 characters. I also fully agree with Robert that for Zapp entries you are on track. But several of the shows you mentioned are on Juried Art and there a more complete artist's statement is needed. I have also found that many individual shows, especially museum shows, require a true artist's statement. Make sure you have the right info for the show to which you are applying.
The statement required by ZAPP is a materials and processes statement, and is casually referred to as the "artist statement". For the purpose of entering shows she's on the right track. A true artist statement that goes into the "why" is still needed for the occasional show that wants both types.
I had trouble finding the longer article here, but I do have it posted here, http://photosig.ning.com/forum/photography-for-jury-images-and-boot..., in a slightly longer form. The article does have headings, so if some areas are of little interest, you can scan through to find what you're looking for. I would suggest reading the entire article as it is the distillation of a day and a half workshop specifically addressing what you're asking about.
Hello Robert... Thanks...that is a lot of excellent info. I always pick up something new and the section about saving photos to a web format was very helpful. I use a Nikon D300 camera and Paint Shop Pro and always look for ways to improve my photo quality.
Between you and Larry Berman I sure have picked up quite a bit of excellent info
Thanks...
Thanks Robert, excellent resources! I've put together 3 Artist statements; 100, 300, and (since a couple of the shows I'm looking at allow up to 1000 characters) 744.
100 (97): These felted scarves are handmade from merino wool, silk and bamboo fibers, and sheer silk gauze.
300 (297): Each piece starts with loose wool, silk, and bamboo fibers and sheer silk gauze. After dying the gauze and fibers, I layer wisps of fiber on the gauze, wet the layers, and work the piece by hand until the fibers interlock, migrate through the gauze, and shrink forming delicate yet durable fabric.
Long (744): Each piece starts with loose wool, silk, and bamboo fibers and sheer silk gauze. I first dye the gauze and fibers in professional acid dyes using a variety of immersion and hand painting techniques. Then, in a process called nuno felting, I layer fine wisps of fiber on the gauze, wet the layers with soapy water, and work the piece by rubbing, rolling, or vibrating the surface with a handheld sander (minus the sandpaper). This agitation causes the fibers interlock and migrate through the gauze. Now that the fibers are fused to the gauze, I use a combination of dropping/throwing, scrubbing, and alternating hot and cold until the wool fibers shrink. The resulting fabric is soft, supple, and delicate, yet surprisingly strong and durable.
And I've darkened the background on my jury images. I've included a booth image here that I know still needs some work. Luckily the most pressing applications don't require a booth image, so I have some time to get that sorted out.
The image download on this site has a 750 pixel limit. With the three images across the photo post totaling 750 pixels, each of the posted images have been reduced to 250 pixels so a lot of detail has been lost. That's to be expected. As far as colors go, make sure your images are in the sRGB color space and no other. While there are variants such as Epson sRGB or Nikon sRGB, those will cause problems with color shift when viewed in standard sRGB.
That explains it. The image I uploaded was 800 pixels, I believe.
Depending on the show, the artist's statement may be either 100, 200, or 300 characters including blank spaces. The most common one is 100 characters, followed by 300, and trailing a distant third is the 200 character statement. There have been several lengthy forum posts and threads on this topic, so doing a search will bring up some useful information.
My suggestion would be to have a dark background for your jury shots as a light one tends to wash out perceived color and contrast.
Here is a link to one of the posts I did after attending the St. Louis art Fair mock jury that will give some quick info regarding jury slides and booth slides; http://www.artfairinsiders.com/profiles/blogs/artist-image-workshop.... There's another one that goes into more detail and is very comprehensive. I'll dig that one up later this evening.