About
Justin Bailey is a designer and maker who develops furniture through bending, folding, and joining, seeking moments of freedom and gesture within the constraints of material and structure. He is an Associate Professor of Art and Design at Indiana University Bloomington, where his teaching and research center on material exploration and making as modes of design inquiry.
Working across wood, steel, aluminum, and Corian, Bailey’s process begins with physical tests: first asking how a material can be manipulated, then how those manipulated elements can be joined. He tests the limits of rigid materials while searching for ways to make them appear light, fluid, and organic. Connections and details are not concealed but become part of a cohesive visual language, allowing structure, assembly, and gesture to shape the identity of the finished object.
In his dream world, everything would float gently, drifting in the wind.
Justin Bailey's work has been exhibited at WantedDesign NYC Launch Pad, SaloneSatellite in Milan, and Stockholm Furniture Fair's Greenhouse. His work has received a Bronze Award in Lighting Design from the International Design Awards, a MetropolisLikes Award, and a LIT Lighting Design Award, and he was recognized by Azure magazine as one of Toronto Design Week's Top 5 Emerging Talents.
Bailey is an Associate Professor in the Eskenazi School of Art, Architecture + Design at Indiana University. He received an MFA in 3D Design from the University of Iowa and a BFA in Sculpture from Webster University.
MFA, University of Iowa, 2016
MA, University of Iowa, 2015
BFA, Webster University, 2012
