Artist Guides
Artist CV: What to Include, Examples & Free Generator
The complete guide to writing a professional artist CV for galleries, residencies, MFA programs and open calls — with real examples, a free template and a generator that exports as PDF.
Quick answer
An artist CV is a structured list of your professional art activity: exhibitions, residencies, education, awards, collections and press. It leads with exhibitions — not education. It fits on one to two pages. It contains no photograph, no skills section, no employment history outside art.
Standard section order: Name & contact → Solo exhibitions → Group exhibitions → Residencies → Education → Awards & grants → Collections → Press & publications.
Ready to build it now? Use the free Artist CV Generator →
In this guide
What is an artist CV — and how it differs from a resume
An artist CV is a structured record of a visual artist's professional activity. Galleries, residencies, grant committees and MFA admissions use it to understand your exhibition history, education and recognition at a glance.
It is not a job resume. It does not include:
- previous employment outside art
- a personal summary or objective statement
- skills sections (software, languages, etc.)
- a photograph
- references
The key structural difference: an artist CV leads with exhibitions, not education. This is the opposite of an academic or corporate résumé. A CV that opens with your degree signals that you are unfamiliar with how the art world reads these documents.
When you need an artist CV
An artist CV is expected whenever you apply to:
- Gallery submissions
- Artist residency applications
- Grants and fellowships
- MFA and art school applications
- Open calls and juried exhibitions
- Studio visits with curators or collectors
- Public commissions and institutional projects
In most cases, the CV appears inside the portfolio PDF — after the artist statement and biography, before the artworks. See the artist portfolio PDF guide for the full structure.
What to include in an artist CV
The standard section order for a visual artist CV — the order most galleries and institutions expect:
1. Name and contact information
Full name (the name you exhibit under), city and country, email address, website. Do not include your full postal address or phone number unless requested. Three to four lines at the top.
2. Solo exhibitions
Reverse chronological order. Each entry: Year — Title (italicised), Venue, City, Country. This is the most important section — it comes first, before everything else.
3. Group exhibitions
Same format as solo. Reverse chronological. Once your list exceeds 15–20 entries, mark the section "Selected Group Exhibitions" and curate ruthlessly.
4. Residencies
Year, programme name, location. Residencies carry significant weight — especially when applying to other residency programmes.
5. Education
Year, degree, institution, city. Art school degrees only. Non-art degrees unless directly relevant to your practice. No secondary education.
6. Awards and grants
Year, award name, granting organisation. Include grants, fellowships, prizes. Do not inflate with minor certificates.
7. Collections
Public and institutional collections only: museums, FRACs, named corporate collections. Never list prices. "Private collection, Paris" adds nothing — omit it.
8. Press and publications
Year, article or catalogue title, publication. Keep it selective. One strong review in a known publication outweighs ten minor mentions.
What to omit
- Employment outside art (unless it directly supports your practice)
- Skills sections (software, languages)
- Objective statements or personal summaries
- Photograph of the artist
- Open submissions with no curatorial selection
- Online-only exhibitions (unless significant)
- Private sales figures or commission prices
Early-career artists
If you have few exhibitions, include what you have honestly: degree shows, student exhibitions, artist-run spaces, open calls. A short CV with coherent entries reads better than a padded one. Selectors understand where you are in your career — what matters is whether the activity is coherent.
Only include sections you can fill
An empty section is worse than a missing one. If you have no collections, omit that section entirely. The CV should reflect your actual practice, not a template you are trying to fill.
Artist CV examples
Two real-format examples showing what a professional artist CV looks like at different career stages.
Mid-career visual artist CV example
ELENA MARSH
Paris, France · elenmarsh.com · contact@elenamarsh.com
Solo Exhibitions
2025 — Sediment, Galerie Noire, Paris, France
2023 — Weight of Surface, Studio Harlow, London, UK
2021 — Fault Lines, Kunsthalle Neustadt, Berlin, Germany
Selected Group Exhibitions
2026 — New Materialities, Centre d'Art Contemporain, Geneva
2025 — Gathering, Fondazione Aperta, Milan
2024 — Terrain, Galerie du Parc, Lyon
Residencies
2024 — Cité Internationale des Arts, Paris
2022 — Vermont Studio Center, Johnson, USA
Education
2019 — MFA Painting, École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts, Paris
2017 — BA Fine Art, Central Saint Martins, London
Collections
Fonds Régional d'Art Contemporain Île-de-France, Paris
Press
2025 — "New Voices in European Painting", Artforum, March
Early-career visual artist CV example
A short, honest CV with real entries always reads better than a long one with inflated listings.
THOMAS VEIL
Lyon, France · thomasveil.com · thomas@thomasveil.com
Solo Exhibitions
2025 — Interior, Espace Commun, Lyon
Group Exhibitions
2026 — Jeunes Créateurs, Galerie des Jacobins, Lyon
2025 — Degree Show, École Supérieure d'Art et Design, Grenoble
2024 — Open Studio, La Chaufferie, Strasbourg
Residencies
2025 — Résidence Artistique, Le Générateur, Gentilly
Education
2025 — DNSEP, École Supérieure d'Art et Design de Grenoble
This CV is short. That is correct — fabricating exhibitions or using vague entries to fill space is immediately detectable by curators who work in the same circuits.
Artist CV templates
The structure of a professional artist CV is consistent across disciplines. What changes is the content — not the format.
A good artist CV template handles:
- Correct section order (exhibitions first, education after)
- Consistent entry format across all sections
- Clean, single-column typography
- PDF export in submission-ready format
The difference between a weak CV and a strong one is rarely the template. It is the consistency of formatting and the quality of editorial judgment in what to include.
Using the CV inside a portfolio PDF
When your CV appears inside a portfolio PDF, it comes after the biography and before the artworks. The sequence is: cover → statement → biography → CV → artworks.
Some institutions ask for the CV as a separate file. Most prefer a single document. When in doubt, include the CV inside the portfolio PDF unless the guidelines specify otherwise.
See the full portfolio PDF structure →
Language versions
The free Artist CV Generator exports your CV as a PDF in English, French, German, Spanish and Italian. Useful for artists applying to residencies and institutions in different countries.
How to format an artist CV
Length
One page for early-career artists. One to two pages for mid-career. Never more than two pages for a submission unless specifically requested. If your CV runs long, apply the "Selected" convention and cut older entries.
Entry format
Every entry in every section follows the same pattern: Year — Title or name, Venue or institution, City, Country. Keep the format identical across every single entry. Mixed formats are immediately noticeable and signal carelessness.
Typography
One typeface. No bold headings within entries. No colour. Section titles can be in caps or slightly larger — but only to separate sections, not to decorate. No photograph. No decorative elements.
Common formatting mistakes
- Chronological instead of reverse chronological order
- Inconsistent entry formats across sections
- CV longer than two pages with no "Selected" flags
- Missing venue or city information in exhibition entries
- Solo and group exhibitions mixed in one list
- Photograph of the artist
- Skills section or software list
- Personal summary or objective statement
PDF export
Export as PDF, not Word or Google Docs.
Institutions expect PDF — it preserves your formatting and is easy to store, share and print.
Name the file clearly: LastName_FirstName_CV_2026.pdf.
Build your artist CV for free
The Artist CV Generator applies all the conventions described in this guide automatically: correct section order, consistent formatting, and PDF export in five languages.
No account. No cloud. No subscription. Everything runs in your browser.
- 12 standard artist CV sections
- Gallery-ready PDF export
- English, French, German, Spanish, Italian
- JSON export compatible with MyArtPDF
- Session save — come back without losing your work
Open the free Artist CV Generator →
Once your CV is ready, bring it into a complete portfolio PDF with MyArtPDF.
Download MyArtPDF
If you want to build this kind of portfolio without wrestling with complex layout software, you can download MyArtPDF for macOS.
A focused macOS app for visual artists who need clean, gallery-ready PDFs.
Frequently asked questions
What is an artist CV?
An artist CV is a structured document listing a visual artist's professional activity: exhibitions, residencies, education, awards, collections and press. Unlike a job resume, it leads with exhibitions — not education — and contains no photograph, skills section or employment history outside art.
What should an artist CV include?
Name and contact, solo exhibitions, group exhibitions, residencies, education, awards and grants, collections (public and institutional only), and press or publications. All sections in reverse chronological order. Only include sections you can populate with real entries.
How long should an artist CV be?
One to two pages maximum. For early-career artists, one page is standard. If your history is extensive, mark sections as "Selected" and curate entries. A CV longer than two pages signals poor editorial judgment.
What is the difference between an artist CV and an artist statement?
An artist CV is a structured list of professional activity. An artist statement is a short prose description of your practice (150–300 words). Both appear in a portfolio PDF — the statement comes before the CV. They are different documents and should never be merged.
Can I use a regular CV template as an artist?
No. Standard CV templates lead with education and include skills sections, objective statements and employment history. None of these belong in an artist CV. Use a template designed for visual artists with the correct section order.
How do I write an artist CV with no exhibitions?
Include what you have honestly: degree shows, student exhibitions, artist-run spaces, open calls. Keep the CV short. A short, honest CV with coherent entries reads better than a padded one. You can also lead with education and residencies if exhibitions are limited.
Should the CV be inside the portfolio PDF or a separate file?
Inside the portfolio PDF unless the institution explicitly asks for it separately. Most galleries prefer a single document — it is easier to store, share and review internally.
Last updated: July 22, 2026