I was born in the Melbourne suburb of Oakleigh, and I currently live in Gippsland in country Victoria. I have been working as an artist for the past fifteen years using a variety of media including painting, photography, digital art and collage, with painting being my primary focus – urban landscapes and street scenes in particular.
Being a music lover, I draw inspiration from the live music scene, and have painted many of Melbourne’s iconic music venues. Other favourite subjects are cafés, shopfronts, train stations and abandoned buildings – anything that catches my eye and tells a story. Other areas of interest include still life, abstract and portraiture.
My musical interests led me to start writing and publishing. In 2017, I collaborated with Melbourne musician Kim Volkman to edit and publish his autobiography, “The Devil Won’t Take Charity” and we collaborated again in 2019 to publish Kim’s second book, “For Those That Dance With The Skeleton”.
In 2019 I released my first book, “Blues Portrait – A Profile of the Australian Blues Scene” featuring interviews with forty-six local and interstate musicians. Volumes 2 and 3 were released in November 2021. I am currently working on Volume 4, due for release in 2023.
I have held several solo exhibitions throughout Victoria including Tacit Contemporary Art and Little Woods Gallery in Collingwood, Marios (Fitzroy), Burrinja Gallery (Upwey), and Banc Café Docklands, and I have also exhibited locally in Gippsland and interstate. I have completed a number of private commissions and my work has been purchased by clients in Europe and the USA. I have been shortlisted for several major art prizes throughout Australia including the Fleurieu Art Prize in South Australia, the Hornsby Art Prize and Paddington Art Prize in NSW, and the Flanagan Art Prize in Victoria. In 2015 and 2016 I was selected as a finalist in the CityScapes competition in Florida, USA.
© Pauline Bailey
