I make paintings to tell stories about the lives of women, rooted in the concept of personal narrative. Depictions of modern female friendships, my family, and women in singular moments of self-reflection and celebration seek to depict my core values of spending time in my community, being outdoors, and finding beauty in the every-day. Whether capturing a glance, walking a dog, or daydreaming, each figures’ actions reveal a narrative, often absorbed in quiet moments of daily living. Scenes from my home, my block, the garden, or a car set the stage. I use clothing, tablecloths, and rugs to emphasize my love of patterns. Sunglasses, jewelry, and other objects add texture and reference current pop culture. My style tends to be bold and graphic, with formal elements such as light and reflections used to create specific moods. I hope to unlock the extraordinary in everyday scenes.
Recent milestones include being named a 2025 Bennett Prize Finalist, Rising Voices 4 at The Muskegon Museum of Art (2025), Dog Show at The Anchorage Museum (2025), the commission of Clayton Rose's Presidential Portrait for Bowdoin College (2023), a solo show at Praise Shadows Gallery (2023), and participation in group shows at Virginia MOCA (2023) and Saatchi Gallery in London (2024). My work is in the private collections of the Bowdoin College Museum of Art, Andy Samberg, Emma Straub, Pamela Hornik, and Fidelity Investments. I received Mass Cultural grants in 2010 and 2016, Since 2011, I’ve sold archival prints with the online website 20x200. Through exposure on that platform, a design director at Kate Spade hired me to paint promotional imagery for their Saturday line from their launch in 2012 until they closed in 2015.
I have taught painting and drawing at many institutions throughout New England after receiving an MFA in painting from Boston University, and a BA from Brown University. I live in Cambridge, MA with my husband and two children.
CV
Solo Exhibitions
2023 "Snapshots", Praise Shadows, Brookline, MA
2010 “Vanitas”, Russell Projects, Richmond, VA
Exhibitions and Fairs
2025 "Motherhood as Muse" Concord Art
2025 "Rising Voices 4" Traveling Bennett Prize Exhibition beginning at Muskegon Museum of Art
2025 "Dog Show" Anchorage Museum of Art
2025 "Cold Turkey," Stolen Space Gallery
2024 "Painting, Smoking, Eating," BEERS London
2023 "Collector's Edition" Virginia Museum of Contemporary Art, Virginia Beach, VA
2023. "Intersect Palm Springs," Praise Shadows, Palm Springs, CA
2022 “Coming Home”, Abigail Ogilvy Gallery, Boston, MA
2022 “Raw Emotion” Gallery Tempo, Jamaica Plain, MA
2021 “Vignettes”, Drive-By, Watertown, MA
2020 “Area Code Art Fair” Juried by Octavio Zaya, www.areacodeartfair.com
2020 “The Yellow Wallpaper”, One Mile Gallery, Kingston, NY
2018 “So Wild and Blue”, Isenberg Projects, Brookline, MA
2016 “Mass Art Auction”, Boston, MA
2016 “Butts and Beaches”, Jonathan Adler Boutique, Los Angeles, CA
2013 “One is Always Forgotten”, Laconia Gallery, Boston, MA
2013 “Portraits”, Drive-By, Watertown, MA
2011 Affordable Art Fair, New York, NY, represented by Russell Projects
2010 “Sky Was Yellow, Sun Was Blue”, Russell Projects, Richmond, VA
Notable Commissions
2023 Clayton Rose, Presidential Portrait, Bowdoin College
2012 - 2015 Independent Contractor, Kate Spade Saturday
Awards and Residencies
2025 Bennett Prize Finalist
2016 Massachusetts Cultural Council Grant Recipient in Painting
2010 Massachusetts Cultural Council Grant Recipient in Painting
2010 The Vermont Studio Center with partial fellowship
Professional Practice
2022 - 2023, Artist, Praise Shadows Gallery
2019 - PRESENT Artist, BK Projects
2011 - PRESENT Artist, 20x200
2014 - 2018 Artist, Jonathan Adler
Press and Publications
2025 "An artist depicts workaday life, the dishes, the laundry, the parenting" Cate McQuaid, Boston Globe
2024 "A Portrait that Captures Clayton Rose and His Legacy"
2024 "Bowdoin’s Presidential Portraiture and the Visualization of Legacy"
2024 Conversation with Maggie Smith - On Becoming Visible
2023 "Extra-Ordinary", Boston Home Magazine
2023 "Intimate moments of Self-Reflection in Seemingly Ordinary Spaces in Helena Wurzel’s Solo Exhibition" Maddie Browning, Boston Globe
2022 "Walk and Talk" featured in Create Magazine, Curated by Daniel Raphael Gallery, London, UK
2020 "Leah" Cover of New American Paintings Featured Artists
2018 I Like your Work Podcast Interview
2016 Massachusetts Cultural Council Painting Finalist
2014 "Endless Summer", Gallery Bergelli, Larkspur, CA
2013 Girls Who Go For It, Kate Spade Saturday Blog
2012 "Portraits", Drive-By, Watertown, MA
2012 "One is Always Forgotten" Laconia Gallery, Boston, MA
2012 "One is Always Forgotten", Cate McQuaid, Boston Globe
2010 "Vanitas", Russell Projects Richmond, VA
2010 "Vanitas" Review, Richmond Magazine
2010 Massachusetts Cultural Council Painting Finalist
2010 New American Paintings, No.92, Northeast Edition
2008 "Women's Lives", MPG Contemporary, Boston, MA
Education
2007 Master of Fine Art in Painting, Boston University
2005 Post-Baccalaureate Certificate, Brandeis University
2003 Bachelor of Arts, Brown University
Teaching
2025 - Life Painting Boston, Somerville, MA
2014-2022 Faculty, Buckingham Browne & Nichols School, Cambridge, MA
2012-2014 Faculty, Montserrat College of Art, Beverly, MA
2009-2012 Critic, Painting and Foundation Studies, Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI
2010-2013 Instructor, Visual Arts Summer Institute, Boston University, Boston, MA
2010-2014 Artist Representative, Gamblin Artist Colors
2010-2014 Artist Representative, Strathmore Paper
2009-2010 Instructor for Summer Studios, Mass Art, Boston, MA
2007-2008 Faculty, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH
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