Writing Your Self-Portrait Artist Statement
SUGGESTED OUTLINE
Paragraph 1: DESCRIBE your self-portrait. Why did you choose to represent
yourself in the way that you did? What did you want to show others about you?
Why? Which of the other portraits/self-portraits you viewed inspired you? What
was it about the work and/or the artist who made it that inspired you?
Paragraphs 2-3: EXPLAIN the choices you made as an artist. What specific
colors, textures, materials, shapes, images, objects, composition, etc. did you
use? Why did you make each of these choices? How do they connect to what you
wanted to show about yourself in your self-portrait?
Paragraphs 4-5: REFLECT on the process of creating a self-portrait. What do
you hope viewers gain from looking at your work? Do you think you were
successful in achieving this? Why/why not? What were some of the challenges
you faced in creating your self-portrait? How did you overcome them? What do
you like most about your self-portrait? Why? What will you do differently next
time? Why? What did you learn from the process of creating a self-portrait?
Remember to:
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Write 3 to 5 paragraphs, and turn in your paper either typed or neatly
handwritten in pen or dark pencil.
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Give your artist statement an interesting title!

Use specific examples and describe your choices with clear, creative, and
interesting details.

Use precise academic vocabulary and words that really convey a strong
image to your reader.
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Edit your paper to be sure you are using correct spelling, grammar,
punctuation, and capitalization.
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SENTENCE STARTERS
Paragraph 1:

In my self-portrait, I chose to represent myself by (verb +ing: creating,
making, painting, drawing, collaging, combining, etc.)…
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What I wanted to show others about myself is…
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I wanted to show this because…
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When we viewed examples of portraits in class, the one that inspired me
the most was (Title) by (Artist).

This portrait/self-portrait inspired me because…
Paragraphs 2-3:

Some of the elements of my self-portrait include…

Additionally, like (artist name) __________, I used…
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I used _____________ colors/shapes because…
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Some of the materials/textures I selected include…

I selected these materials/textures because…
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In my self-portrait, I included the objects/images of _____ because…
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I also included __________ because…
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The ____________ that I used connects to what I wanted to show about
myself because…
Paragraphs 4-5:
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Ultimately, what I hope viewers gain by looking at my work is…

I think I was/was not successful in achieving this because…

A challenge I faced in creating my self-portrait was…
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I overcame this challenge by (verb +ing: making, trying, doing, starting,
asking)…
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My favorite aspect of my self-portrait is… because…
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Next time I create a self-portrait, I will… because…
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art

Overall, what I learned from the process of creating my self-portrait is…
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art