What is a CV? What is a bio? What is a statement? Why do we need them?

What is a CV? A curriculum vitae, Latin for ‘course of life’ is a short-written summary of a person’s career achievements, qualifications and education. When writing about oneself, you need to be clear, concise and conventional from the very beginning. A CV is a way of expressing to the employer how you are the perfect fit for the job, a way of highlighting all your relevant skills and past employment. At the end of the day a CV is just a list. It may be a very impressive list but, it is just a list. Be sure to keep it up-to-date and improve on it and, add to it when asked.

Biographies, what are they? Well, an artist’s bio is a way to express to your audience who you really are and what your work means to you. In many biographies you tend to find where the artist has come from, the journey through which they came to be where they are now and their many achievements such as; awards, shows and publications.

Statements … A statement can be a short introduction to many various things such as; your practice as a whole, a specific body of work, wider concerns, motivations and processes. Statements are useful for many reasons because, they introduce you and your work, they focus your thinking, they can be used for websites and press releases and finally, they are mainly used for the ongoing reflections of the artist.

Many people confuse the bio with the statement but, even more confuse the CV with the bio. I hope the concise information I have supplied above will help you with the understanding of the differences between CV’s, bios and statements if you ever find yourself needing to write one.