Once Upon a Time... In the Shadows
Artist Helen Hughes
1) In a World of My Own: Helen Hughes 2010
Medium: Photography and Digital Illustration
This beautifully sensitive work is a delicate representation of Hughes’ identity. The work originally featured in a Self Portrait Exhibition at the Mash Gallery in St Helens Merseyside. Featuring her silhouette the work displays Hughes' personal interest in fairytales and fantasy whilst also demonstrating her portrait in a more subtle manner. The delicate sepia tones provide the work with an almost ethereal quality, creating a visual illustration of being lost within one’s own thoughts which tend to be visual within your mind yet tangibly ungraspable.
Medium: Photography and Digital Illustration
This beautifully sensitive work is a delicate representation of Hughes’ identity. The work originally featured in a Self Portrait Exhibition at the Mash Gallery in St Helens Merseyside. Featuring her silhouette the work displays Hughes' personal interest in fairytales and fantasy whilst also demonstrating her portrait in a more subtle manner. The delicate sepia tones provide the work with an almost ethereal quality, creating a visual illustration of being lost within one’s own thoughts which tend to be visual within your mind yet tangibly ungraspable.
2)The Wings of Time: Helen Hughes 2010
Medium: Photography and Digital Illustration
The Wings of Time is a piece which encapsulates the fluttering ephemeral nature of a passing moment. The presence of flying birds demonstrates how time essentially flies, a literal interpretation of the common saying “time flies”. However Hughes’ reminds the audience of the restrictive nature of life with time by depicting a closed bird cage. The presence of a stop watch creates an awareness of the passing of time whilst the female form invokes thoughts of Mother Nature controlling time without restriction, encapturing it within her birdcage.
Medium: Photography and Digital Illustration
The Wings of Time is a piece which encapsulates the fluttering ephemeral nature of a passing moment. The presence of flying birds demonstrates how time essentially flies, a literal interpretation of the common saying “time flies”. However Hughes’ reminds the audience of the restrictive nature of life with time by depicting a closed bird cage. The presence of a stop watch creates an awareness of the passing of time whilst the female form invokes thoughts of Mother Nature controlling time without restriction, encapturing it within her birdcage.
3)The Beast: Helen Hughes 2009
Medium: Photography and Digital Illustration
The Beast demonstrates the raw passion of this classic fairytale. The anguish and frustration of the Beast is embodied within his shadowed pose clutching the enchanted rose which bares his curse. The presence of nature and the animalistic character of the Beast is reinforced in the surrounding illustrations filled with twisted twigs and wild foliage.
Medium: Photography and Digital Illustration
The Beast demonstrates the raw passion of this classic fairytale. The anguish and frustration of the Beast is embodied within his shadowed pose clutching the enchanted rose which bares his curse. The presence of nature and the animalistic character of the Beast is reinforced in the surrounding illustrations filled with twisted twigs and wild foliage.
4)The Pied Piper: Helen Hughes 2009
Medium: Photography and Digital Illustration
Hughes’ piece entitled The Pied Piper perfectly illustrates this wonderful tale. Through her shadows and subtle illustrations Hughes invokes the classic plot of the Pied Piper calling the rats that scuttle along the bottom of the image.
Medium: Photography and Digital Illustration
Hughes’ piece entitled The Pied Piper perfectly illustrates this wonderful tale. Through her shadows and subtle illustrations Hughes invokes the classic plot of the Pied Piper calling the rats that scuttle along the bottom of the image.
5)The Lost Slipper: Helen Hughes 2009
Medium: Photography and Digital Illustration
The Lost Slipper is a work that beautifully illustrates one of the most famous and beloved fairytales of all time, Cinderella. Here in Hughes’ image displays the climatic discovery of Cinderella’s glass slipper. The delicacy of this image and deepened tones of blue in contrast to the white cut out illustrations generate a greater sense of enchantment.
Medium: Photography and Digital Illustration
The Lost Slipper is a work that beautifully illustrates one of the most famous and beloved fairytales of all time, Cinderella. Here in Hughes’ image displays the climatic discovery of Cinderella’s glass slipper. The delicacy of this image and deepened tones of blue in contrast to the white cut out illustrations generate a greater sense of enchantment.
6)Masquerade: Helen Hughes 2009
Medium: Photography and Digital Illustration
Masquerade is one of Hughes’ most elegant pieces. The shadows and green ambient lighting creates a wonderful sense of enchantment whilst the presentation of the silhouetted figure and mask invokes all the mystery of a captivating masquerade ball.
Medium: Photography and Digital Illustration
Masquerade is one of Hughes’ most elegant pieces. The shadows and green ambient lighting creates a wonderful sense of enchantment whilst the presentation of the silhouetted figure and mask invokes all the mystery of a captivating masquerade ball.
7) Goldilocks: Helen Hughes 2009
Medium: Photography and Digital Illustration
Goldilocks is an extremely vivid piece using an eye catching purple tone. It directly depicts one of the most famous moments in fairytale history, the moment when Goldilocks tastes the bear’s porridge. It features the strongest references of narrative out of the shadow series and also creates a sense of physical space and environment through illustrated items of furniture that are visible, generating a sense of the space of the bear’s cottage.
Medium: Photography and Digital Illustration
Goldilocks is an extremely vivid piece using an eye catching purple tone. It directly depicts one of the most famous moments in fairytale history, the moment when Goldilocks tastes the bear’s porridge. It features the strongest references of narrative out of the shadow series and also creates a sense of physical space and environment through illustrated items of furniture that are visible, generating a sense of the space of the bear’s cottage.
