Meet Helen Fitzgerald

Hi Helen, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I grew up in England with Mr. Reilly. Or rather, I grew up with a bust of Mr. Reilly, a sculpture in ciment fondu which my father had created when I was a child. He had a bold African head with a beautiful stoic expression. He was quite a character. I loved being able to explore the crevices of his face with my fingers. One day in London with my father when I was a teen, we ran into the real Mr. Reilly. It was such a shock to meet the living version of the person I felt I knew so intimately, and it was the start of my fascination with the lasting impact sculpture can have upon us.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
My sculpting, which had always been a spontaneous endeavor, got put on hold when my children were born. As they grew up, the urge to get back to work returned. By luck, we were living near Paris and there was a thriving sculptors’ atelier nearby, with the most spectacular facilities attended by beginners, professionals and everyone in between. Within the safety of that artist community, I could experiment. Every comment or piece of advice was valid; the sharing of knowledge between sculptors of different backgrounds and experience was critical to my development. Now that I am living in the States, I felt that I was just on the verge of establishing a similar support system when the pandemic struck. So today, I work alone in my studio, but in the certainty that normalcy and community will return once again in the not too distant future.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
As a portrait sculptor, I love the creative journey. While I never seek to create a carbon copy of the sitter, the finished work must conjure up the spirit of the person whose portrait I am undertaking. The process toward revealing that person’s essence in sculpture is a uniquely intimate experience and profoundly rewarding, for both artist and, I hope, model.

Is there any advice you’d like to share with our readers who might just be starting out?
“Just do it” sums it up nicely. There will be days when you feel uninspired but produce interesting results, and days when the imaginative juices seemingly flow in abundance, but the results are wanting. Each experience is useful, whatever the outcome. Never stop seeking, questioning, exploring. Even at the end of my career, I hope in some way I will still be starting out.

Pricing:

• Unique portrait busts from $3,000

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: www.fitzgerald-sculpture.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/fitzgeraldsculpture/
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/fitzgeraldsculpture/

Image Credits
Fitzgerald Sculpture