Born in the UK, Helen moved to the USA to attend college. First the Rhode Island School of Design for her BFA in Painting and then Indiana University for graduate school. Helen remained in the USA for another twenty years teaching drawing and painting at college level, initially at Kansas City Art Institute and the last seven years teaching drawing at Tyler School of Art, Temple University in Philadelphia. During this time Helen exhibited her paintings in galleries across America including New York, Philadelphia, Washington D.C and Chicago. Helen continues to paint and exhibit and is currently represented by Gallerie Sparta, Beverly Hills. In Florence Helen is part of a cultural group "I Buontalenti" and her paintings can be seen as part of an annual cultural celebration of the patron Saint of Florence, Saint John the Baptist and at other venues. Helen has had a long term relationship with Florence and Italy; her first visit was as a study abroad student in Rome in 1987. Return visits ensued for teaching, fun and study, including a summer at The American Academy in Rome as a visiting artist/scholar and intensive summer workshops at The Florence Academy of Art. Helen is a licensed guide of Florence and the province of Florence and has made the city of Florence her home.