Helene Steene
312 Madison Place
Lexington, KY US
40508
Profile Type: artist
Steene's work is well recognized for its many layered depth, intensity of colors, and elegance of surface. Her classical oil glazes, using natural mineral pigments, marble dust textures, and metal on wood panels, create a powerful mix of the old and the new. Her use of wood panels offers flexibility in sizes, shapes and textures to fit specific areas, and she shows great sensitivity to the surroundings for an installation, and the purpose of the space when designing a piece. Steene's work is collected widely in Europe and the US, and she has won numerous awards for her work. Steene moved to the US from Sweden, where she grew up. First lived in Washington DC where she did most of her undergrad studies, ran art galleries, and had her own studio for 12 years. In 1987 she moved to Lexington, KY where she got her MFA, and has her private studio. "Steene's luminous layers of colors and intuitively balanced structures are reminiscent of "Rothko's luminous paintings. Her visual subtleties slow down the viewing process and contribute to an overall sense of harmony and inner peace, one that serves as an antidote to todays's fast-paced, chaotic world." - Jane S Peters, Professor Emerita, Art History & Visual Studies, University of Kentucky, USA "Call Steene's paintings the fusion of geometry and grace, which probes and pierces, or let us say we gaze out from the eye of light itself" - Peter Abbs, Emeritus Professor Creative Writing, University of Sussex, Great Britain