How to Start an Artist Statement

I always find I need help to begin writing my artist statement. If you are like me, you will have a head full of research, information, and ideas; with no idea how to start your first sentence. 

To help myself and others start, I've found some good questions for writing the "Artist Statement", they are as follows: 

• Why do you create art and what does it mean to you?
• How does the creation of art make you feel? What emotions do you wish to convey?
• If the statement refers to a specific piece, why did you choose to represent this piece in this way? What do you call the piece and why? What materials did you use? What are the dimensions of the piece?
• What inspires you? How are your inspirations expressed in your work?
• What message are you trying to convey to the viewer?
• How much time is spent creating your pieces?
• How is your work a reflection of you?
• What artists (living or dead) have influenced you?
• What is your vision/philosophy?
• What are your goals for the future?
• What are your techniques and style and how do these relate to the medium?
• How do your techniques and style relate to your vision/philosophy?

The link to the site these were taken from is here.

Also, here are some examples I have found on another site that were very liberating to read. I know I get easily confused and disheartened without examples, so these helped a lot.

Jonathan H. Dough - Artist Statement"My artwork takes a critical view of social, political and cultural issues. In my work, I deconstruct the American dream, fairy tales, nursery rhymes, and lullabies that are part of our childhood and adult culture. Having engaged subjects as diverse as the civil rights movement, southern rock music and modernist architecture, my work reproduces familiar visual signs, arranging them into new conceptually layered pieces.
Often times these themes are combined into installations that feature mundane domestic objects painted blue, juxtaposed with whimsical objects, and often embellished with stenciled text. The color blue establishes a dream-like surreal quality, suggests notions of calmness and safety, and formally unifies the disparate objects in each installation. The texts provide clues to content and interpretation.
While I use a variety of materials and processes in each project my methodology is consistent. Although there may not always be material similarities between the different projects they are linked by recurring formal concerns and through the subject matter. The subject matter of each body of work determines the materials and the forms of the work.
Each project often consists of multiple works, often in a range of different media, grouped around specific themes and meanings. During research and production new areas of interest arise and lead to the next body of work."

The link to the site the statements were taken from is here. 

Here is a link to my artist statements, let me know what you think, and If you have anymore ideas for writing artist statements, please let me know (:

Influences: Julian Ashton and Ivan Aivazovsky

Julian Ashton's Australian landscapes are very honest, yet beautiful. They fill me with a sense of '"home", and a desire to discover more about my country, Australia. However, I feel odd that I should be feeling these things, because I think all I ever do is wish I was traveling again, wish I could move away, and wish it wasn't so hot all the time. Townsville is brownsville. Though, Ashton's art works have inspired me to explore and paint the Townsville scenery, which is something I haven't done before.

In my latest works I explore my utopian place. My utopia concept is combined with an exploration into the sublime in nature and landscapes, books, and movies. My aim is when others look at my work they catch a little of what I am trying to show them.

I believe art is a journey. Art and our souls are inevitably strung together. If there is a relaxing of my heart and mind towards this city of summer, then it will show in my art.