Instagram bio ideas

Artist bios that say what you make

An artist's Instagram bio should say what you make, whether people can buy it or commission you, and where to go next. Your grid already shows the style, so the bio can stay practical. Below are bios for painters, illustrators, digital artists, potters, printmakers and hobby artists, with a formula and tips on commissions, prints and links.

Updated 6 October 2026 · 52 bios

Tap a bio to copy it, or Edit it first. Counts are out of Instagram's 150-character limit.

Short and direct · 8

Oil paintings of quiet kitchens and empty chairs 🎨
50/150 characters
I draw the birds in my garden. Mostly the rude ones 🐦
53/150 characters
Watercolour, coffee rings and the odd happy accident 💧
54/150 characters
Painting the sea from memory 🌊
30/150 characters
Ink, paper, patience ✒️
22/150 characters
Big canvases, small studio 🖼️
28/150 characters
Colour first, rules later 🌈
27/150 characters
Drawing every day, posting most days ✏️
38/150 characters

By medium · 10

Acrylic landscapes of [region], painted outdoors when the weather allows 🌄
74/150 characters
Children's book illustrator 📚 Soft pencil, softer colours
57/150 characters
Digital artist: character design and fantasy maps 🗺️
51/150 characters
Wheel-thrown mugs and wonky bowls from a garage studio 🏺
56/150 characters
Linocuts and screen prints, pulled by hand on a table-top press 🖤
65/150 characters
Embroidery artist. Every stitch by hand, every knot hidden 🧵
60/150 characters
Sculptor working in clay, bronze and stubbornness 🗿
51/150 characters
Pastel portraits of pets and the people who spoil them 🐾
56/150 characters
Abstract painter. Yes, it's meant to look like that 🟥
53/150 characters
Muralist: walls, shutters and the occasional water tower 🧱
58/150 characters

Commissions · 7

Commissions open for [month] 🎨 DM COMMISSION for prices and the wait time
73/150 characters
Commissions closed until spring 🌱 Join the waitlist: link below
63/150 characters
Custom pet portraits from your photos 🐕 Comment PET on any post for sizes and prices
84/150 characters
House portraits in ink and wash 🏡 A gift for movers and new owners. DM HOUSE
76/150 characters
Live wedding painting: your day on canvas by the last dance 💍 Dates: DM LIVE
76/150 characters
Logos, book covers and album art ✍️ Briefs by email, link below
62/150 characters
Commission prices, sizes and timings in the highlight 📌 Read it, then DM me
75/150 characters

Prints, originals and shops · 7

Originals and prints, shipped flat in card 📦 Shop link below
60/150 characters
New print drop on the first Friday of the month 🗓️ Comment DROP for early access
79/150 characters
Small paintings, small prices 🖌️ Everything under [price] in the shop
68/150 characters
Find me at [market] most Saturdays ⛺ Or shop online, link below
63/150 characters
Stickers, pins and zines from my sketchbook 📒 Shop restocks every Sunday
72/150 characters
Free phone wallpaper of my latest painting 📱 Comment WALLPAPER and I'll send it
79/150 characters
Open studio on the last weekend of the month 🚪 Address in the highlight
71/150 characters

Hobby and part-time artists · 7

Self-taught painter. Most of my early work is under the bed 🛏️
61/150 characters
Nurse on weekdays, painter on days off 🩺
40/150 characters
Sketchbook number 14. Still filling the margins 📓
49/150 characters
Art degree on hold, drawing anyway 📐
36/150 characters
Retired teacher, new to oils and very happy about it 🌻
54/150 characters
Drawing on the train to work since [year] 🚆
43/150 characters
Doodles on receipts, napkins and anything else within reach 🧾
61/150 characters

Studio notes · 7

I paint what the light does to ordinary rooms ☀️
47/150 characters
Making work about home, distance and my grandmother's hands 🤲
61/150 characters
Small drawings about big feelings 🖊️
35/150 characters
Collecting textures: rust, bark, cracked paint 🪨
48/150 characters
The studio smells of turpentine and toast 🍞
43/150 characters
Paintings that take months, posts that take seconds 🐢
53/150 characters
Process videos, unfinished pieces and the rare finished one 🎥
61/150 characters

Credit and reposts · 6

Reposting? Please credit @[handle] 🙏
36/150 characters
Fan art welcome, tracing isn't ✏️
32/150 characters
Share freely, credit kindly 🤍
29/150 characters
My art is not for AI training 🚫
31/150 characters
Please ask before printing my work. Prints are mine to sell 🖨️
61/150 characters
Seen my work posted without credit? Tell me in DMs 👀
52/150 characters

Write your own

A bio that works usually has the same few parts. Fill them in for yours, or start from the example.

Your medium
Your subject or style
Where you show or sell
Commission status or a next step

Worked example

Watercolour and ink 💧 Old shopfronts of Glasgow Prints online, markets on Saturdays Commissions open: DM SKETCH

111/150

Fill in the blanks

Each part becomes a line of your bio. Nothing you type is uploaded.

1. Your medium

2. Your subject or style

3. Where you show or sell

4. Commission status or a next step

Your bio

Your lines show up here as you type.

0/150

Tips for your bio

Put what you make in the name field, for example “Mira | Pet portrait artist”. People search for what they need, like “muralist” or “pet portraits”, and the name field is one of the things Instagram search matches.
Say whether commissions are open, and change the line the day that changes. “Commissions closed, waitlist below” saves you answering the same DM over and over while your queue is full.
Make a Commissions highlight with sizes, prices, the wait time, how payment works and a finished example. One bio line, “Prices in the highlight”, then does the work of a paragraph.
Name two or three mediums, in the order you post them most. A list of eight reads like a CV and leaves no room for a next step.
Instagram allows up to five links in a bio, but only the first shows on your profile until someone taps for the rest. If you sell in several places, make the first link the shop or the commission form.
Pin a process post, such as a time-lapse or a sketch next to the finished piece. You can pin three posts to the top of your grid, and new visitors see them before anything else.

Questions people ask

What should an artist put in an Instagram bio?

What you make in plain words (“oil paintings of the coast”, “picture-book illustration”), whether you take commissions or sell prints, and where to buy or ask. Your grid shows the style, so the bio can stick to the facts a buyer needs.

Should I just write “artist” in my bio?

Only with something after it. “Artist” alone tells people very little; “artist painting dogs in oils” tells them whether to follow. A professional account can also show a category label such as Artist under your name, which frees the bio for detail.

Where should I put my commission prices?

In a highlight or on the page your link opens, with sizes, what's included, the wait time and how payment works. Prices change, and a highlight is quicker to update than a bio. The bio then needs one line, such as “Commissions open, prices in the highlight”, or a DM keyword.

Should my art have its own account?

If you sell or take commissions, it helps. A separate account keeps the grid on your work and can be a professional account, with contact buttons and insights, while your personal account stays private. Mention each account in the other's bio with an @ so people can find both.

Can a bio line stop people reposting my art?

No, but it sets expectations: “Reposting? Please credit @yourname.” A signature or watermark on each image helps people trace the work back to you. If someone posts your work as their own, Instagram has a form for reporting copyright infringement.

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