ABOUT

Helen McCullagh

@helenmccullagh

Helen is best known for her bright, contemporary and aesthetically beautiful still life oil paintings. Helen holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Southern Cross University. She is a professional artist who shares her knowledge and techniques as an art educator and previously at the Gallery of Modern Art. Her work is internationally sought after and regularly reviewed. She is a significant prize winner and was most recently received Highly Commended in the prestigious Muswellbrook Art Prize (2015). Helen’s work is often featured in interior magazines including Belle, Real Living, Home Beautiful, Country Style and House and Garden along with international publications Martha Stewart Living, Vein (Spain), Libelle (Netherlands). Her work is also featured on blogs such as Design Sponge and The Jealous Curator.

“A love of oil paint, and colour theory in general is the drive behind my work. A combination of soft layers and thick impasto areas informs my process, with a preference for intuitive colour mixing rather than preplanning. The still life form offers the perfect subject matter to deeply explore colour, it’s contrast; it’s dance. I paint as a means of meditation, as a way of discovering, of learning what works and why. Pattern, colour and composition being the main focus. Painting is an escapism for me, it offers both satisfaction and frustration, but demands total mindfulness, to the point that I don’t consciously think, and it just comes through a series of movements and intuitive choices. I’m strongly influenced by the modernists and more particularly Henri Matisse, Andre Derain, Vuillard, Bonnard, Margaret Preston and Fairfeld Porter”.

Head over to the 'Press' page to see a few of the many places Helen's work has been featured. If you have any questions - please email info@helenmccullaghart.com