Jean Hélion

(French, 1904–1987)

Jean Hélion was a French artist known for his use of controlled color relationships and bold curving lines. He worked with both non-objective and figurative painting over the course of his career, often straddling the two. “I understand abstract art as an attempt to feed imagination with a world built through the basic sensations of the eyes,” he once reflected. Born on April 21, 1904 in Couterne, France, Hélion studied chemistry at l'Institut Industriel du Nord in Lille but never completed his degree. In 1921, he moved to Paris, working as an architect’s assistant and frequenting the Louvre. While visiting the museum, he encountered the works of Nicolas Poussin and determined to switch courses and become a painter. By the mid-1920s, Hélion had entered into a milieu of artists that included Otto Freundlich and Joaquín Torres-García. Quickly transitioning from Cubism to nonobjective abstraction, the artist adopted and implemented ideologies culled from artists such as Piet Mondrian and Max Ernst. In 1940, he joined the French resistance army, was subsequently captured, and lived as a prisoner of war for the next two years. Following his release, Hélion rejected pure abstraction in favor of more figurative elements, producing paintings which harkened back to Neoclassical compositions and the works of Fernand Léger. The artist died on October 27, 1987 in Paris, France. Today, his works are held in the collections of the Peggy Guggenheim Collection in Venice, the Tate Gallery in London, The Museum of Modern Art in New York, and the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris, among others.

Jean Hélion Artworks

Artworks for Sale &
Auction Results

Jean Hélion (2,537 results)
Le cirque, 1939–1943

Jean Hélion

Le cirque, 1939–1943

Sale Date: March 30, 2022

Auction Closed

Belle-Île, arrière port du Palais, 1963

Jean Hélion

Belle-Île, arrière port du Palais, 1963

Sale Date: March 13, 2022

Auction Closed

Bruté, Belle-Ile-en-Mer, 1959

Jean Hélion

Bruté, Belle-Ile-en-Mer, 1959

Sale Date: March 15, 2022

Auction Closed

Sans titre, 1963, 1963

Jean Hélion

Sans titre, 1963, 1963

Sale Date: February 12, 2022

Auction Closed

Terrasse de café - 1953, 1953

Jean Hélion

Terrasse de café - 1953, 1953

Sale Date: January 26, 2022

Auction Closed

Abstrakt komposition., 1933

Jean Hélion

Abstrakt komposition., 1933

Sale Date: January 20, 2022

Auction Closed

Equilibre, 1933

Jean Hélion

Equilibre, 1933

Sale Date: December 21, 2021

Auction Closed

COMPOSITION Encre et gouache sur papier

Jean Hélion

COMPOSITION Encre et gouache sur papier

Sale Date: December 7, 2021

Auction Closed

Feuilles d'automne - 1957, 1957

Jean Hélion

Feuilles d'automne - 1957, 1957

Sale Date: December 8, 2021

Auction Closed

Carmen - 1956, 1956

Jean Hélion

Carmen - 1956, 1956

Sale Date: December 8, 2021

Auction Closed

La charrue - 1957, 1957

Jean Hélion

La charrue - 1957, 1957

Sale Date: December 8, 2021

Auction Closed

Luxembourg - 1955, 1955

Jean Hélion

Luxembourg - 1955, 1955

Sale Date: December 8, 2021

Auction Closed

Cherchez le cycliste, 1979

Jean Hélion

Cherchez le cycliste, 1979

Sale Date: November 19, 2021

Auction Closed

Les traversants, 1965

Jean Hélion

Les traversants, 1965

Sale Date: November 24, 2021

Auction Closed

Journalier et passants, 1942

Jean Hélion

Journalier et passants, 1942

Sale Date: November 16, 2021

Auction Closed

Abstrakt komposition, 1933

Jean Hélion

Abstrakt komposition, 1933

Sale Date: October 28, 2021

Auction Closed

Étude pour le tableau Nu étoilé au fumeur et , 1949

Jean Hélion

Étude pour le tableau Nu étoilé au fumeur et , 1949

Sale Date: November 5, 2021

Auction Closed

Étude pour le tableau Nu étoilé au fumeur et , 1948

Jean Hélion

Étude pour le tableau Nu étoilé au fumeur et , 1948

Sale Date: November 5, 2021

Auction Closed

Still life with pumpkin, 1952, 1952

Jean Hélion

Still life with pumpkin, 1952, 1952

Sale Date: November 9, 2021

Auction Closed

Hier et aujourd'hui, 1983

Jean Hélion

Hier et aujourd'hui, 1983

Sale Date: November 6, 2021

Auction Closed

Composition, 1939

Jean Hélion

Composition, 1939

Sale Date: October 21, 2021

Auction Closed

Portrait de Pegeen Vail Guggenheim, 1946, 1946

Jean Hélion

Portrait de Pegeen Vail Guggenheim, 1946, 1946

Sale Date: October 16, 2021

Auction Closed

A Shade Tree, 1964, 1964

Jean Hélion

A Shade Tree, 1964, 1964

Sale Date: October 14, 2021

Auction Closed

Suite pucière à l'horloge et au phonographe, 1977

Jean Hélion

Suite pucière à l'horloge et au phonographe, 1977

Sale Date: October 25, 2021

Auction Closed

English (US)

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