Meet Your Artist: Helen Hiebert

The Vail Daily is running a series highlighting some of the artists in the Vail Valley. To be considered, please send an email to request the questionnaire to A&E reporter Tricia Swenson (tswenson@vaildaily.com).

Q: How long have you lived in the valley and what brought you here?

A: I have lived in the valley since August of 2012. My husband’s job brought us here – he is the editor of Vail Beaver Creek Magazine.

Q: Where did your passion for art come from?

A: I have always been fascinated with how things are made and craftsmanship. I discovered pop-up paper sculpture in college and had the opportunity to study in Germany for a year, where I took a class that was all about paper as a medium. A couple of years later, on a trip to Japan, I realized that there was a papermaking tradition. I was living in New York City at the time and ended up working at a studio that specialized in papermaking as an art form. I am continually exploring new ways to work with paper, both in the papermaking process, but also with readymade papers.

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Q: Describe your style of art.

A: My main works are artist’s books, which are books that are works of art. I usually make the paper and integrate stitching, watermarks or imagery into the pages of the books. These are limited-edition books that are collected by universities, institutions and private collectors.

Q: Who are your favorite artists?

A: Two of my favorite artists are Sol LeWitt, whose conceptual art explored progressions, and Eva Hesse, who was fascinated with process and materials.

Q: Tell us about one of your favorite pieces that you’ve worked on.

A: I create installations that involve the community. In 2014, I created “The Wish“, a permanent installation at Anythink Huron Street library in Thornton. The Wish is a giant dandelion composed of paper seeds that symbolize private wishes that come together as a whole in a metaphor for human connectedness. In 2022, I returned to this amazing library system as an artist-in-residence at Anythink Wright Farms, where I constructed a giant paper lantern called “Step Into the Light” that hung in the library. Viewers were invited to step inside of the lantern and ponder how they can ‘be the light’. When they stepped out of the lantern, they were prompted to think about how they can share their light in their communities.

Q: Who has helped you along the way? Who/what inspires you?

A: Being an artist is pretty isolating, on all kinds of levels, including the business of selling art. I’ve worked with a marketing coach, which was very helpful, and I have an accountability buddy, who I talk to regularly about making art and running my business. So many artists who are working with paper inspire me, and I write a blog, called The Sunday Paper, featuring artists who are working with paper in innovative ways, every week. 

Q: If you weren’t an artist, what would you be doing?

A: I may have pursued architecture. That’s what I dreamt I’d be when I was a kid.

Q: What do you hope people take away from your work?

A: I hope to make a connection with those who experience my work. I am always thinking about how we humans connect to each other, from our familial relationships to living on this planet together.

Q: Where is your work shown (a local gallery) or how/where can people view it?

A: My work is pretty niche so I don’t show locally, but as of June 2023, the lantern I mentioned is on view in the Vail Public Library. I also take appointments in my studio in the old schoolhouse in Red Cliff, and I host a week-long Red Cliff Paper Retreat every August.

Q: Anything else we should have asked, anything else you’d like to share?

A: I run an online membership program called “The Paper Year,” where we explore a different paper project each month, and I teach a popular month-long paper weaving course every February. Both of these programs are open to all levels with an interest in paper.