Artist

Helena's work carries a touch of her long-standing interest in Japanese traditional arts, transcending these into a sensitive openness towards the language of moods, colours and structures. She has been interested in Japanese as well as European philosophy and aesthetics, and is intrigued by stimulating a dialogue between theoretical humanities (such as philosophy, psychology etc) and fine art. This has led her to expore themes such as mindfulness in art and synaesthesia.

One of her projects included participation at university conferences and workshops where she painted in situ, finding a visual expression for what the speakers presented. Part of this desire to connect theory and practice forms a series of Helena's works playing with the motive of text; her text-art works use text as a kind of an ornament. Here text loses its legibility, its intellectual stiffness, and becomes a lively ornamental structure.

Helena's 2017 painting project dealt with the motive of “ensō” 円相 the symbolic Zen circle. In Zen, the circle symbolises the fragile balance between the mind and the body, a moment of enlightenment and the overall harmony of the Universe. The motif also refers to the human perception of time;  sometimes the circle is incomplete to suggest the uncesing process of development. Helena took inspiration from this symbolism and created a series of paintings featuring circles. She combines the traditional Japanese Zen symbol with a very Western style of abstract painting. The mingling of aesthetic traditions of Asia and the West is an important feature of Helena’s work. In this series Helena works mainly with acrylics and watercolours.   

Helena also works with the medium of photography capturing mainly deprived urban environments. She is interested in the adverse side of urban life, and the contrast between the overcrowded cities and the loneliness of their inhabitants. She enjoys finding humour in the sterile language of street signs and various inscriptions found in urban landscapes, contrasting with the dynamics of human life.

In another recent project Helena took interest in the local history of North Wales, bringing vibrant colour and new freshness into half-forgotten images of the former Victorian seaside resorts.

Apart from her fine art and exhibition projects, Helena's work also includes commissions, such as bespoke flyers, leaflets and posters as well as logos, website designs, book-covers and illustrations. 

Since 2016, Helena has focused manily on her art historical and curating roles, creating her own artwork for personal expression rather than for business. She keeps creating and sees her own art practice as a gateway to a closer understading of the artists she works with in her capacity as a reseracher and curator.  

Explore Helena's work in the 'Artist' scroll menu above.