What Pages Does an Artist’s Website Need?
Between portfolios, about pages, and contact forms, it’s easy to overthink your layout. Looking at other artists’ websites can make it even more confusing. Everyone’s site looks and feels so different. But there are actually just four basic pages your artist’s website needs to get started:
Home
About
Contact
Legal (privacy policy, terms and conditions, disclaimers)
Questions Your Website Needs to Answer
Imagine someone types your name plus your creative medium into a search bar. This is what they want to find out:
Who are you and what do you create?
What’s your background, and how does it influence your art?
Where can they see more of you and your work?
How can they reach you?
Simple questions with straightforward answers. No need to let a blank page intimidate you.
As long as it’s clear at a glance where to see this information, you’re set.
4 Basic Pages for Every Artist’s Website
These pages are to get you started. If you want your website done so people can find and contact you ASAP, start here. Anything else can come later.
Home Page
The first place someone lands when they click on your site. If your website was a hotel, the home page is the front desk. It lets people know they’re in the right place and where to go next.
What you need:
A clear page heading
An attractive photo or video
An introduction paragraph that tells visitors what you do in 3 sentences or less
A description of your art, products, or services
About Page
Often the first place people go to after the Home Page. It tells people more details about who you are, what you do, why you do it, and your creative background.
What you need:
A clear heading
A photo of you
A short bio (300-500 words)
A call to action to direct people where to go next (like your contact page, blog, or portfolio)
Contact Page
Where people go when they want to connect with you. You can link to your social media here, too.
What you need:
A welcoming heading
Your contact information and/or a contact form
Expectations on your response time
Legal Pages
These are the least fun pages to put together, but they are essential for a professional website.
If site visitors have to enter their email address for any reason (like using a contact form or subscribing to a newsletter), you need a privacy policy. You also need it if you use tools like Google Analytics.
If you offer any education, industry insight, or advice on your site, you need a disclaimer page. It basically means someone can’t sue you if they followed your advice from a blog post and things didn’t work out like they wanted.
If you sell products or services, you need other policies. Do you accept returns or refunds? How are they handled? If you ship physical products, how long does that usually take?
You need a terms and conditions page to make all the rest enforceable. This is the page that usually starts with “by using this site, you agree…”
For more detailed information on legal requirements for your privacy policy, visit https://gdpr-info.eu/.
Bonus Pages
“But Amanda,” you say, “what about my portfolio? Don’t I need a blog, too?” Honestly, it depends. There are a lot of extra pages you can add to your website. But whether you need them depends on your site’s intention.
Other pages:
Portfolio/Work/Projects - If you need to showcase a curated selection of your best work.
Services/Offerings - If you sell creative services, people need a clear outline of what you offer.
Shop - If you sell physical or digital products on your site.
FAQs - If you sell products or services, give people the answers they need before they’re ready to hand over their money.
Blog - If you want to write articles for your audience and draw more visitors to your site through search engine optimization (SEO).
Want clarity on your site’s intention and what pages your website needs? Contact me and we’ll figure it out. No charge, no obligation to work with me.
