Born in Syracuse, New York, Bailey spent part of his childhood on his uncle's dairy farm, north of there. While growing up, he moved around the country a bit, living in Texas, Oklahoma, and Missouri, before returning to New York.

"We all have 'coming of age' events and periods in our formative years that stand out, or hide, in our memory. These play a big part in how we see and emotionally respond to things, the rest of our lives." Being a romantic, Bailey focuses on the fond memories. Some that stand out for him are: haying season, and bringing the cows in for milking, while working on the farm; hopping freight trains to go fishing during his Huck Finn days in Missouri; working nights at the Velasko Inn, then stopping at an all night diner, during his high school years; his summer working carnival games, in upstate New York; going to college as a single parent, in Rhode Island; and teaming up with two inspiring partners to create a tee shirt, and then design business, to finance his college years.

Bailey studied illustration and painting at Rhode Island School of Design. Remaining in Rhode Island, he developed a successful illustration career in association with in Manhattan. Clients included: Paramount Pictures, Atlantic Records, Avon Books, Harper Collins, Playboy Magazine, Anheuser-Bush, Seagrams, and Volvo. During this time he was a guest lecturer at four colleges and at the International Design Conference, in Karachi, Pakistan. It became apparent that it was time for a change.

In the mid 90s, Patrick moved from a small island town, off the coast of New England, to a city in the Arizona desert and gradually merged from illustration into a painting career. This transition has become his Western, Fine Art time in his life. Since this move, his work has been shown in galleries in Scottsdale, AZ; Sante Fe, NM; La Jolla, CA; Palm Springs, CA; San Antonio, TX; and Marin County, CA. 

Bailey's early inspirations included: N. C. Wyeth, Andrew Wyeth, Winslow Homer, and Edward Hopper, then later, Joaquin Sorolla, Burt Silverman, and Wayne Thiebaud. He loves to combine his passion for painting with a passion for travel. He's made extensive road trips across North America, Mexico, and England, as well as sojourns to Italy, the Antilles, and primitive villages in the Darien Jungle in South America. Between gallery pieces and commissions, he is working on a collection from the jungle. It will be entitled, a "Portrait of the Darien".

Bailey has always been reluctant to talk about his work. "It speaks for itself, but eventually, after having been asked over the years, 'why are you compelled to do this?', it begs some response: 'Being an artist is always being in the state of becoming.' As for communication, art has the potential to be genuine magic. It is an expression of love. A painting is a response to the experience of being alive. To me, the difference between a nonobjective abstract and a painting of known objects is the same as the difference between music without lyrics or music with lyrics. They are both inspired from emotions and a desire to communicate. They both can be wonderful and they both succeed, or not, on their merits. I've never understood any argument between the two camps. As for subjects, I paint anything that evokes an emotion, anything that speaks to me. I see sensuality in the shapes of a flower or an automobile. I see romance in a barn, a diner, a carnival, a road, or a face."