i2artgallery

Helena Reut is part of our ‘Fairytales – Curious Realms of the Imagination’ exhibition, on until 24 March.

“Walter Benjamin wrote about the aura of the work of art, and lamented its loss in the age of mechanical reproduction. I draw my subjects from history, mythology and the imagination because that is where I believe ”aura” has its roots. I strive for that unspoken quantity through which a painting can enchant and even haunt its viewer.”

Helena-Alexandra Reut was born in Belarus and studied in Moscow (Russian State Humanities University, Faculty of the History of Religion; Moscow Institute of Applied Arts), then continued in Warsaw (Academy of Fine Arts, graduation work supervised by Piotr Welk – Graded ‘Excellent’). She also attended the Warsaw School of Photography (directed by Marian Schmidt), the British Higher School of Art and Design, Moscow, and others.

In Helena’s own words, “The role of visual art is to express that which no other medium can convey. The exquisiteness of a painting is its inexplicable something – its striving for sacrum. For centuries it did this by exploring explicitly religious themes – biblical scenes, myths and fables. I believe this heritage is vital for the continued relevance of art, which is why I draw inspiration from, for example, the medieval period, the Fayum portraits, and difficult questions about the roots of the Slavic peoples – themes related to the art of bygone ages and the spirits of those times. The techniques used by those artists also fascinate me, and I try to employ and re-interpret their methods in my own work.”

Helena has exhibited internationally including Warsaw and Moscow. She is married and now lives in Cambridge where she has also exhibited some of her work.

To see more of Helena’s work, available to buy, go to http://i2popupgallery.com/artist/i2-Art/category/129/FAIRYTALE.html