Jean Hélion (French, 1904–1987) was a Modern painter, and a leading figure in the abstract art movement. Born in Couterne in northwest France, Hélion studied engineering and architecture in Lille before relocating to Paris in 1921. Initially working as an architect and painting in his spare time, Hélion first became interested in abstraction after Joaquín Torres-García introduced him to Cubism.

In 1928, he had his first exhibition, showing two paintings at the Salon des Indépendants. In 1931, Hélion co-founded the Abstraction-Création group, an association of artists who advocated pure abstraction. In the early part of his career, his works largely focused on still lifes, using simplified colors and bold lines. As his work evolved, he became one of the leading figures in French non-objective painting in the 1930s. During this time, Hélion was known for his compositions of large-scale, curved forms, arranged in sequences against backgrounds of flat color.

While serving in the French army during World War II, Hélion was taken prisoner and held captive by the Germans, an experience that inspired him to write the memoir They Shall Not Have Me. Following the war, Hélion rejected pure abstraction in favor of more figurative elements. Though he eventually returned to a more abstract style in the 1960s, he used acrylic rather than oil.

Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, his work was shown in Europe and the United States. During the 1970s he exhibited primarily in France.

Today, his works can be found in major institutions around the world, including the Art Institute of Chicago, the Guggenheim Museum in New York, the Centre Pompidou in Paris, and the Tate Gallery in London.