Bio

Becky Bailey's artistic practice is an ongoing attempt at resisting the unceasing demands on our time and attention. She makes objects as a way to focus, slow down, and steep herself, and the viewer, in ambiguity, mystery, and unknowns. As part of her process, Becky researches myths and rituals and visits landscapes and spaces that captivate, enchant, and exude the potential for the supernatural. Her interdisciplinary approach involves painting, drawing, ceramics, paper-making, and installation.

Before enrolling as an MFA candidate at the University of Connecticut, Becky completed several residencies, including at Anderson Ranch Arts Center, The Studios at MASS MoCA, and Monson Arts Center, and has shown work in exhibitions across the U.S.

Statement

At some point in my childhood I began making shrines around dead animals I found in the woods. A bat, a bird, a squirrel. Each time I came upon one of these creatures, I’d place sticks, rocks, and plants around the body in some esoteric configuration. It wasn’t about making meaning, but about marking the feeling of mystery and unknowability I’d found. My memories are filled with these explorations in the woods. Finding those animals or their bones, building things with clay from a stream, or discovering a big, rusty vehicle of unknown origin. I’d climb on these ruins, peek inside, and wonder where it came from and why. The landscape held secrets.

In my practice, I want to make mysterious and charged things. Like the wooded spaces of my childhood in New Jersey or the Santa Fe landscape where my grandparents lived, something simmers under the surface. Something lurks behind the veil. The objects I make resist language, creating their own mystery, presence, and pull.