One of South Florida’s most recognized artists is lending his talents to the cover of the Palm Beach Chamber of Commerce’s guide, and also creating an opportunity to support Meals on Wheels.
Walk into artist Bruce Helander’s West Palm Beach studio and you’ll discover it’s much like his artwork: it’s a collage of surprise, exuberance and history.
Collage is the art of trimming down existing pieces of paper, cloth or photographs and rearranging them in a new composition onto a larger surface. Helander’s studio is brimming with objects that inspire his process, and the stacks of vintage magazines that become his tools. When the pieces are assembled, they appear almost seamless in their transformation. Helander unites the pieces through color and pattern and it takes on new meaning in his composition.
“I usually sand certain areas with a very light sandpaper to make them kind of come together,” he explained.
Helanderhas worked for the New Yorker, designed posters for an array of film festivals, and even done commission work for the Vatican in Rome. His work is included in the collections of dozens of museums around the world. Most recently, he created the cover for the Palm Beach Chamber of Commerce’s 2021 guide. The guide is taking a creative approach to offset some of the challenges of the pandemic.
In the cover image, the artist nods to nostalgia with vintage postcards.
“Vintage imagery always seems to have more color, more authenticity, more history,” Helander said.
Helander united the images with pops of orange color. Many of the island’s most recognizable landmarks are featured, including The Breakers, Worth Avenue, the Paramount Theater, and Ta-boo restaurant.
“If you put together disparate images but you have a common denominator, throughout, which is color and vintage material, then you have something that sort of solidifies the composition,” he explained.
A limited edition giclee of the image will be signed and numbered by the artist. They will be sold to benefit Meals on Wheels.
“Every time it’s a very important commission you kind of give it that extra mile,” he said.
Contact Bruce Helander’s studio to purchase a signed print, here.
