Autumn 2018 | Page 14

What do you picture when you think of the life of ‘an artist’?

Is it someone slightly unconventional, perhaps born with a brush in their hand and perfecting their technique over years? If so, you’re probably not alone, but the reality of life as an artist couldn’t be more different for Helen Mason, who, at the age of 48 has emerged as one of Wexford’s most promising local artists.

In the space of just one a year, Helen has gone from complete beginner to exhibiting in the Cockleshell gallery, the Green Acres gallery, Wexford Arts Centre and St. Michaels theatre. Her talent is also recognised abroad with paintings in private collections in the UK, the USA and in Canada.

November 17th sees Helen launching her first solo exhibition in the Hook Lighthouse – a very familiar location for Helen who grew up in Slade, just down the road from the famous Lighthouse and who knows the ‘Hook Rocks’ like the back of her hand.

Helen’s links with the sea run deep. Her father worked in the Hook Lighthouse and she spent her youth ‘walking the rocks’ around the Hook. Later she married a fisherman, and both she and her two children are heavily involved in watersports, including rowing and swimming. She feels that her experience of being in the water, especially kayaking with Sheilbaggan Kayak Academy, combined with her memories and her imagination, gives her an innate sense of how water moves and feels. And this energy is reflected in her paintings.

When asked about her technique, Helen explains that as a self-taught artist she doesn’t feel that she has a particular technique that she can

describe. “It’s more like all this creative energy that I didn’t even know was inside of me, just comes out. I don’t sit down with a clear idea of what I want to paint, I layer colours on the canvas until the painting emerges – almost like how the ebb and flow of the outgoing tide reveals the beauty of rocks beneath the surface.”

She is passionate about preserving local knowledge about the ‘Hook Rocks’ and when the opportunity arose to have her own exhibition in the Hook, she wanted to name it ‘Along the Rocks’ as an acknowledgement

of the local heritage.

Ann Waters, General Manager of the Hook Lighthouse, said "We’re delighted to host Helen’s ‘Along the Rocks’ exhibition at the Lighthouse cafe. Her pieces are beautiful and unique and we have no doubt that they will be greatly appreciated by our visitors.”

Helen is a living example that it’s never too late to try something new. She has had a varied career but this new chapter of her life opened up when she joined a community art class, through WWETB, in Ramsgrange Community School. “When I was leaving Ramsgrange Community School after my Leaving Cert and heading to London to pursue a career, I never imagined I’d be returning there almost three decades later or that it would open up these incredible opportunities for me.”

The launch of Helen’s exhibition will take place on Saturday 17th November at 3pm when the artist will be on hand to talk about her experience. The exhibition runs until Saturday January 15th 2019.

All are welcome!