Stephen Bird was born in 1964 in the United Kingdom and has lived in Australia since 1999, primarily residing in Sydney, where he lectures at the National Art School. For the past four years, he has spent time in Byron Shire, developing both a studio and a garden. He earned a BFA (Hons) from the Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art in Dundee, Scotland, where he majored in painting. Upon graduation, he received the Elizabeth Greenshields Foundation Award, which enabled him to pursue postgraduate studies at the Cyprus College of Art.

Bird’s work has been exhibited both nationally and internationally, including at the Sidney Myer Fund Australian Ceramic Award, Shepparton Art Museum, Victoria (2019); The 9th Gyeonggi Biennale, South Korea (2017); Horizon – Landscapes, Ceramics, and Print, The National Museum of Norway, Oslo (2013); and Peripheral Visions: Contemporary Art from Australia, Garis+Hahn, New York (2013). His works are held in numerous public collections, including the National Museum of Scotland, The National Gallery of Australia, and the National Museums of Northern Ireland. He has received professional development awards from both the Australia Council and the Scottish Arts Council and has been recognized with honors such as the Gold Coast International Ceramic Award (2016) and the Deakin University Contemporary Small Sculpture Award (2011). He lectures at the National Art School in Sydney and the Byron School of Art.

Bird is renowned for his distinctive work in both painting and ceramics, blurring the boundaries between abstraction and figuration. His art delves into marginalized histories, personal narratives, and folklore-inspired storytelling. His characters and visual narratives emerge from intuitive drawings, later transformed into ceramics, paintings, and sculptures.