HELEN ELLIOTT, enamelist

Jamaican artist Helen Elliott is distinguished among a select circle of fine art enamel artists.

Born in Jamaica in 1948, her early life provided an environment that was rich in visual and sensual content.  Stories and imprints from her Caribbean origin inform her alluring abstract compositions of layered texture, color, and form.  In the artist’s words:

“From the beginning, I was taught to look beyond the surface.  My parents passed down the appreciation of small, subtle details that could have gone unnoticed. The observance of details led me on a path towards understanding the essence of things – past pleasures, that which seemed meaningless, or my own unfledged wisdom – towards the unseen…”  

After studying at the Froebel Institute in London focused on Early Childhood Education, Helen eventually channeled her instinct and interest toward her passion as an artist. Her creative work with textiles and painting led to her introduction to enameling.  She enrolled at Kent State University to pursue further graduate study in enameling and received an M.F.A. degree in 1997.

Since 1992, her works have been exhibited internationally, and are collected by prominent institutions such as the Yale University Museum, New Haven, CT,  Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Arkansas  Museum of Fine Arts, Little Rock, Arkansas, and the Crocker Art Museum, Sacramento, California.