In preparation for applying to residencies/jobs I have been researching into the difference between CV’s, biographies and statements…
Artist Biography
(https://artquest.org.uk/how-to-articles/biography/)
-About you and your career as a practitioner
-May include your name, medium, key themes you explore, art related education, where you live/work/were born, may summarise some achievements/exhibitions mentioned in the CV
Artist Statement
(https://www.gyst-ink.com/sample-artist-statements)
-About your art practice
-May include ideas, concepts, techniques
Artist CV
(https://artquest.org.uk/how-to-articles/artist-cv/)
-Brings together your professional achievements into one document
-(See some examples here: https://weare.guru/creative-cvs/) A creative design helps you to stand out and makes your CV memorable and personal. However don’t overdesign it.
-A CV may contain contact information, solo/group exhibitions you have been in, awards, publications, commissions, residencies, art education and art experience (e.g. working on projects/ in galleries- only if relevant though.)
To understand how different artists approach the above I have been looking at some examples:
- https://www.helensear.com/about Helen Sear has a downloadable CV in PDF format. It lists solo/ group exhibitions, education, awards/scholarships, publications and residencies. She has chosen to include a photo. She begins her artist biography by summarising key parts of her CV, such as education, media and exhibitions. She has merged the statement and biography into a single text, highlighting key themes she explores. David Company, a writer and curator, finishes off her ‘About’ page with a quote about her and her practice
- https://alecsoth.com/photography/about Alec Soth has different tabs that drop down for different sections of the CV, as opposed to a downloadable PDF. His biography contains his birth day and where he was born, the number of publications he has and examples of some more renowned ones. There isn’t a clear artist statement, he is very unrevealing about his practice, preferring to not go into detail about his ideas, techniques and methods.
- https://mishkahenner.com/Bio Mishka Henner writes his biography in first person. It’s split into three paragraphs, the first covers where he lives and is from, ‘born in Belgium and living in the UK.’ He then elaborates on key themes, mediums and research, and finally lists a range of institutions he has exhibited in. He has chosen to include a photo of himself that expresses the nature of his practice and him as an artist. Below are contact details and a CV organised by year.
As an early career artist my CV will have less notable experience and therefore I shall embellish it with brief descriptions. I shall make my CV on InDesign, black and white and sized to A4.