As a visual artist and curator, Pauline Bailey has led numerous art projects centred around engagement, equality and diversity, working with a range of excluded and vulnerable groups to find creative expression, particularly addressing issues around heritage, identity, sense of place, health and wellbeing.
She is one of the core members of the Black Arts Forum and Handsworth Creative, based in Birmingham, and also co-founder of the Daughters of Africa Foundation in the Gambia. Pauline has curated and exhibited work both nationally and internationally and is continuing to develop opportunities for emerging artists internationally alongside her individual visual arts practice.
Pauline’s practice has always centred around identity and belonging, and she also has a strong interest in other themes such as ‘dereliction’, the natural environment, found/recycled materials and objects of the everyday.
She often produces site-specific installations but also works in a range of other mediums, including textiles, photography and video. In all her work, Pauline’s individual art practice is generally informed by the multiple layers of diverse cultures and heritage of the African diaspora.
When asked about the causes of community unrest, Pauline says:
“Because of the racism that existed in how the police were treating people in the community, for most of my associates, it was inevitable that there was going to be an uprising or a riot (Handsworth, 1981).”
