Pauline Bewick was brought up on a small farm in Co. Kerry, Ireland. Her mother Harry Bewick has written an account of their life in Kerry called ‘A Wild Taste’ (Methuen). After Kerry, she and Pauline went to England where they travelled from progressive school to school. They lived on a houseboat, in a caravan, a railway carriage, a workman’s hut, a gate lodge and, later, in a city house in Dublin. Lacking a formal education hasn’t hindered Pauline’s confidence or career, very much due to her mother saying things like ‘you’re a genius, no need to wash up, you paint.’ And if Pauline asked her a question Harry would answer ‘you don’t have to know all that rubbish, it will just fill up your head.’

She has now been living back in Kerry for over 30 years with her psychiatrist husband Patrick Melia. Their two daughters Poppy and Holly are also artists. Pauline works in three large studios on paintings, sculpture, tapestry, ceramics etc. The retrospective exhibition of her works from Two to Fifty (1,500 works) at the Guinness Hop Store in 1985 and The Yellow Man exhibition in 1996 at the RHA Gallagher Gallery, both had record attendances.

Her biography was written by Dr James White, former Director of the National Gallery of Ireland; Pauline Bewick: Painting a Life (Wolfhound Press 1985). David Shaw-Smith filmed a documentary on Pauline A Painted Diary which was shown on RTE and Channel 4 and at the 1993 film festivals in Los Angeles, Chicago and the Pompidou Centre, Paris.

In September 1998 she was chosen for a portrait of 100 people who have changed the face of Ireland.

Kelly Reads Bewick, 2001 , saw the award winning publication of a major collection of Pauline Bewick’s paintings each with a critical essay by the poet and writer Rita Kelly (Published By Arlen House, Galway).

Now available Pauline Bewick 7 Ages a retrospective of her works over the last 70 years. (Published By Arlen House, Galway).