One of the most significant decisions of your adult life will be choosing where to go to university and what to study. Most of us have many and varied interests, as well as strong feelings about where’s best not only to nurture our interests but also to live while we’re doing it, so settling on a choice can be tough.
That said, you’re undoubtedly reading this because you’ve thought about what you’d like to study and maybe even concluded it will be Fine Art. Congratulations!
Once you’ve worked out where you’d like to pursue this, the next step is applying, and your personal statement is one of the most important parts of this. It’s a challenge to write because it has to cover a lot of ground in a small space, but the trick is to approach it methodically and to tackle it systematically.
This guide will help you to achieve this by taking you through the following steps, so you end up with a compelling and informative personal statement:
The basis of any informed decision is information. This applies to degree choice, university choice, and career choice. You (hopefully) wouldn’t make any of these decisions without first having reviewed the facts and weighed up the pros and cons of your potential selection.
In a similar way, universities have to make a choice about which students to admit. They don’t want to grant places to people who are uninformed about what they’ve chosen to do, or who are likely to be unhappy and drop-out further down the line. The personal statement is there to help them with this.
A personal statement tells admissions tutors who you are, why you’re suitable, and gives them some inkling of the student you’ll become. This is why personal statements are important; they’re an unrivalled opportunity for you to say in your own words why you, out of everyone, deserve a place on the course, and to leave admissions tutors in no doubt of your readiness and drive to do well.
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Fine art is a fundamentally practical course underpinned by theory, so demonstrating not only what you have achieved and can achieve in terms of the execution of art, but also that you understand the importance of the history and theory of art, is vital. This blend of theory and practice is what makes a Fine Art degree so appealing to many, and universities will want to see that you appreciate this when applying.
Art for Art's Sake
The practice of art cannot be divorced either from its history or from its presence; it’s impossible for it not to be informed by its antecedents or current environment. For this reason, you shouldn’t be embarking on a Fine Art course if you have no appreciation for the history and theory of art, as all universities wish to see that you understand the manifold influences exerted on its production over time.
It’s therefore insufficient to be a good draughtsperson or painter; you should make sure you can talk as knowledgably about movements as you can about techniques. Remember to back up any discussions in the personal statement with any sources (be it specific books, artists, exhibitions, or historical periods) you have consulted so as to demonstrate your academic engagement and critical analysis skills.
Origins of Your Interest
It’s not really enough to say ‘I like art’ or ‘I like sculpture’ to demonstrate your interest and motivation for doing a Fine Art degree. It’s more meaningful to talk about your particular artistic passion, how it came about, and the ways in which you’ve given expression to it.
You might talk about competitions you’ve entered, viewings and exhibitions you’ve attended, or artists you’ve read about or spoken to. As long as you’re showing an active engagement with the subject and give a sense of where you’d like to take it if admitted to the degree course, you’ll establish a good basis for your interest.
Continuous Development
Fine Art departments like to see how you respond to critiques and feedback, and the ways in which these inform your art. As you’ll be working very closely, perhaps one-on-one, with a tutor, you need to be able to take on board suggestions and constructive comments, which may or may not lead you to revise how you go about executing your art. Quell any concerns they may have by demonstrating in your personal statement (with concrete examples) how you have responded to observations in a receptive way and how these have informed your practice.
