EXHIBITIONS

Dependence Daze, 2004

A project examining cultural co-dependency between the US and UK, produced jointly with MA students from Central St Martin's and Maryland Institute of Commercial Art.  Helen collaborated with Illustrator, Tom Eastland, and focused on London's famous 100 Club, (which has been rockin' Oxford Street since 1942!)  examining our intertwined musical heritage. A series of beermats was produced celebrating 'going out culture' over several decades, through period line blocks.  The complete project was exhibited online and at the Mall Galleries in 2005.

" The strap line used during the blitz on the 100 Club's posters was 'Forget the Doodlebug, Come and Jitterbug'.  Meaning literally you could dance the night away  in the safety of this cellar bar, while the rest of London was being bombed. This, I feel says much about the function of an evenings entertainment - escape the realities of life for a few hours.  During this period, many G.I.'s  frequented the club and introduced American style dancing and music, which was seen as exotic (or threatening!) by the Brits. This relationship and cross fertilisation continues! - I have attempted to convey this escapism and transformation in this work."

D'Yall Say "Y'all" where you come from? Exhibited in Mall Galleries, London 2005 and Hat Factory, Luton 2007.

 A series of 16 posters featuring quotes collected while in the US highlighting our differences and silmilarities in culture through language.

"I have had an interest in American roots influenced music from the early 20th C. to the mid 1960's for a number of years now, along with letterpress printing and the development of early poster graphics. In September, 2004, I visited Nashville to carry out an internship at Hatch Showprint, a letterpress poster & graphics company, and took this opportunity to find out more about the origins of the music I love, which largely originated in Tennessee.

After extensive research, I visited many sites of significance within this sphere in Memphis and Nashville, enjoying dialogue with many people along the way. In order to understand the fibre of the place and to remind me of certain events once I had returned to the UK, along with photographs and ephemera collection, I recorded 'aural souvenirs' on cassette tape, including conversations I'd had, as well as background noise and speech.

I feel certain quotes convey much about the feel of the area and it's populace and my relationship as an outsider. I am attempting to communicate these quotes through print, presented in letterpress poster form. This dialogue, I feel draws a parrallel with the bill poster, as messages can either be received directly, or indirectly as part of one's personal 'background noise'. "