Ester Helenius
Finnish painter (1875-1955)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ester Emmy Maria Helenius (16 May 1875 – 12 October 1955) was a Finnish artist[1] known for the vibrant use of color in her paintings.[2] This vibrancy was so notable that art historian Tutta Palin described her as a "worshipper of ecstasy."[3] While mainly a painter, Helenius was also trained in printmaking.[4]
Life and career
Helenius was an artist in residence at the famous Lallukka Artists’ Home in the Etu-Töölö district of Helsinki.[4] Her art from this period was on display in 2020–2021 at the Helsinki Art Museum in the exhibition Lallukka – Life in the Home of Artists, alongside other well-known Finnish visual artists of the mid 20th century.[5] Helenius' work has gained posthumous notoriety after being written on by Finnish art historian Tutta Palin in the book Ester Helenius: Värihurmion palvoja, a popular reference for tracing the evolution of Helenius' work. Her sales records have been donated to the Hämeenlinna Art Museum as part of her legacy.[6]
Helenius is known to have had love affairs with women.[7] Popular Finnish author and illustrator Tove Jansson has written of her interactions with Helenius during her time in Paris, France in her book Letters From Tove.[6] Both artists lived at the Lallukka Artists’ Home.[8] Helenius' art can be found at auction on sites such as Hagelstam & Co.[9] and Bukowskis[10] for estimated values of up to 2,000 euros[11] Her work also remains in the collections of the Finnish National Gallery,[4] the Helsinki Art Museum,[12] and the Hämeenlinna Art Museum, among others.