The artist Hélène Barraud, aka Hélène Barrò, from Monterosso but French Swiss of origin, is a concentrate of energy, ideas and creativity. She studied Graphics; art lover, wine and motorcycles enthusiast, Hélène creates contaminations that make her work personal, unique.
“I’ve always drawn and I don’t feel like an artist, I draw by passion and I enjoy experimenting with techniques and always thinking about new ideas.” And these ideas become paintings, fabrics, objects with a strong Ligurian connotation so she represents the houses of Monterosso the ones Hélène calls “Tiny Houses”, but also the sea, the anchovies, the “gozzi”. Everything recalls her link with Liguria, with the Cinque Terre in particular.
“I have many memories related to my land, crowded summers and endless baths, blackberries in August and figs in September the first fresh days, walks through the woods and mushroom picking, the smell of the cellars in the “carrugi”, the long and empty winters and the first flowers of Spring. I speak about my land because it is within me in every sign and in every color.”
The fragrances, the colors of the Cinque Terre are for Hélène elements rooted in her personality, so her art celebrates the nature of these places through many artistic projects, all Ligurian. And speaking of nature, wine certainly can’t be lacking. It is natural to celebrate this product which, in the Cinque Terre, has a particular value, symbol of the hostility of this land and of the stubbornness of these people.
Hélène has studied the artistic image of the Azienda Agricola “A Scià” (Monterosso, Cinque Terre), creating labels that look like works of art. So she dresses the bottles, “A Scià Riserva” and says: “Sciacchetrà can only be a woman! Its golden color and its passionate flavor makes me think of a long braid that shines in the sun “. The wine theme is undoubtedly a source of great artistic inspiration for the Hélène, in fact she is currently curating the restyling of the Sassarini Winery labels for the fiftieth anniversary of the foundation, and she’s organizing the “Art Rail” exhibition during the event “Sciacchetrail 2018”.
Among the projects of Hélène Barrò, a “meeting place with art”, a space inaugurated this year in Busto Arsizio where the artist hosts artists, sculptors, photographers, painting classes, in which she spreads the love for art at 360 °. But so much energy must be regenerated! And what better way than riding accross the beloved Ligurian roads on a motorcycle? Yes, because Héléne is also a motorcyclist.
“My passion for motorcycles was born from my need for freedom and independence, with the bike you can take roads to observe unique landscapes in the world. It is not really a vehicle but a means by which to observe the surrounding universe from a different perspective. ”
Which Ligurian road has conquered her “biker” heart: “By motorcycle you can take the coastal road. It was reopened a month ago after the flood that destroyed many paths and roads in 2011; some of them like the “Via Dell’Amore” are still closed; you can also take the road of the Bracco Pass from Brugnato to Sestri Levante, there you can pull the bike and give gas! Liguria is all beautiful to see, because any road arrives in small historic towns or offers beautiful views of the sea.”
