Dubai's Helena Fann First US Show

It was a colorful evening for the visitors to Turning Point Gallery on July 11th. Shown here in front of Helena Fann's work are gallery owners Garry and Jerri Meldrum, Helena center and Art Consultants Sarah Coppola and Marlowe Dutton.

Undersea Imagery With Nude Drama

Artist’s Acrylics Stage Turning Point From South African to Dubai Culture

Feathery angelfish float serenely through a sea of dramatic aquatic hues in one painting, as a human female form wrapped in erotic ribbons of color radiates nearby in another. Could both paintings come from same artist? Only if that artist is Helena Fann.

Turning Point Gallery’s featured artist July 3-Aug. 4 presents “Scales, Skins and Things,” an unlikely blend of undersea splendor with startlingly beautiful—and mature—human forms. Known for her vibrant aquatic and nude paintings, acrylic artist Fann recently relocated to Raleigh, but was born in South Africa and owns a home in Dubai.

“With me I bring a bit of Dubai culture—in the form of abstracts, which is very popular over there,” she says. “They love rich colors, the color of the ocean, the warmth of the desert and the color of gold.”

Fann will attend an opening reception during the 2ndFrday ArtWalk at Turning Point gallery July 11 from 6-9. Fann will also serve as the judge for a Turning Point Gallery children’s art contest, which seeks 2D, 8-by-10-inch undersea pictures in any medium from contestants in two age groups: 3-5 and 6-8. The gallery will award a prize to the winner of each group, as well as an overall prize of an original painting by Fann.

Fann matriculated from Johannesburg School of Art, Ballet & Music. She was commissioned to illustrate a children's book during her final year in school, and went on to work in the display department of a large company designing posters and building props for window displays. After marriage and the birth of her son, Fann started her own advertising and promotions company, which left little time for painting. She moved to Cape Town in 1993 with her new husband and extended family, where she was able to fully pursue her passion for drawing and painting.
“The clear vibrant colors she uses together with the strong lights and darks give depth to the ocean and to the painting,” says Patricia Southcombe, former gallery director of Hunar Gallery in Dubai. “In their own way, these paintings are also very evocative with the floating fins of the angelfish.”

Christopher Southcombe met Fann while serving as Dubai International Art Centre’s chairman when she joined on as a teacher, and was particularly struck by the originality of her nude works. “Sensuality is well expressed in forms such as those clothed in the leopard skin and the giraffe skin,” he says. “By depicting only a part of the female form, essential characteristics of each animal can be inferred. The graceful power of the leopard and the serene elegance of the giraffe are subtly expressed.”

Learn more about Fann, her upcoming show and the children’s art contest at www.harmonyfineart.com.