Helene Valdez

Helene Valdez:  Helene’s work has been featured in numerous art openings, exhibits and special events through VSA and ARCA.  She particularly loves painting portraits of Native Americans, through which she explores her ancestral connections to the Apache Tribe.  She takes every opportunity to visit nearby pueblo reservations to observe feast days, celebrations of the social dances, and to go to pow-wows to watch the dancers.  This gives Helene inspiration for her portraits.  She also loves to write poetry and has had her work featured in the Enabled Writer, readings at South Broadway Cultural Center, and on the Dial-A-Poem poetry hotline.  Helene writes or uses sign language to express her thoughts.  About her art she says, “ I feel good… lucky know could do… from inside… wait come out… patient.  CP first always people meet see… me in poem… me in painting… people stop… look… read… know me.  Here... friends… understand… learn... galleries, shows… be out in world… Angry if people say I.. no art... can't do art.  Honesty… I want real feelings to show… I want people to know real me.”