Helen Sear

Helen Sear (b. UK, 1955)  is a photographic artist who has worked in the medium for over two decades and whose work has been exhibited internationally; notably in Quebec, New York and London.  She is the first female artist to represent Wales at the prestigious Venice Biennale in 2015, as well as being the recipient of several artist’s awards including The Major Creative Wales Award from the Arts Council Wales in 2011.

Helen’s innovative work explores the human experience of our natural environment, focusing on the sensory response of touch and vision—revealing the co-existence and interplay of the human, animal and natural worlds.   She often uses digital techniques to create a layered-effect of flora, fauna and human subjects, which evokes magical realist qualities. Beyond photography, Helen also works in video, installation and digital technologies, including a film commissioned by Crescent Arts and Forestry Commission England titled Wahaha Biota (2018, 27 mins), in which birdsong, deer calls and rock lyrics are woven into a musical chorus amongst the trees.

Helen Sear lives and works in Wales and France. 

By Eileen Church-Riley