Italian and portuguese artist, HElena Valsecchi was born in Novara, Italy, in 1976. She currently lives and works between Lisbon and Peniche, Portugal.
After graduating in Public Relations at IULM, Milan, with a thesis in semiotics, on Urban Legends, and after a few years of professional experience in marketing and category management, she decided to leave and travel for a while through South America, before returning to Europe to spend a few months in Lisbon, Portugal, where she finally settled, in 2008, and where she later started her art practice.
In 2019, she was awarded a grant from Carmona e Costa Foundation – MArt -Sá da Costa to participate in the MArt residency programme, 2019-2020.
Between 2020 and 2022, she integrated the team of RAMA – Residencias Artísticas.
In 2025, she obtained a Master’s degree in Visual Arts at ESAD.CR.
She was selected for the book Portuguese Emerging Art – 2023, edited by Emerge, and, in 2024, for the prize Prémio Arte Jovem – Millennium BCP, organized by Carpe Diem Arte e Pesquisa.
Through the exploration of the relations among materials, images and symbols, her practice focuses on the ever-unfulfilled yearning for transcending the limits of the individual, the dialectics between part and whole, as responses to the fragility of existence.
In 2019 she was awarded a scholarship from Carmona e Costa Foundation and MArt.
She was a guest resident at RAMA, Residências Artísticas da Maceira e Alfeiria, and integrated the project team in 2020-2022.
In 2023, her work was selected for the book Portuguese Emerging Art – PEA23, edited by Emerge.
In 2024
Italian and portuguese artist, HElena Valsecchi was born in Novara, Italy. Lives and works in Lisbon and Peniche, Portugal.
She holds a degree from IULM (Milan, Italy, 1999) and a Master’s degree in Arts from ESAD.CR (Caldas da Rainha, Portugal, 2025).
After a few years of professional experience in marketing and category management, and a long travel through South America, she settled in Lisbon, Portugal (2008), where she later started her art practice (2018).
In 2019, she was awarded a grant from Carmona e Costa Foundation – MArt -Sá da Costa to participate in the MArt residency programme, 2019-2020.
Between 2020 and 2022, she integrated the team of RAMA – Residencias Artísticas.
In 2023, she was selected for the book Portuguese Emerging Art, edited by Emerge.
In 2024, she was selected for the prize Prémio Arte Jovem – Millennium BCP, organized by Carpe Diem Arte e Pesquisa.
Through the exploration of the relations among materials, images and symbols, her practice focuses on the ever-unfulfilled yearning for transcending the limits of the individual, the dialectics between part and whole, as responses to the fragility of existence.
2025
- Research residency – Catania / Etna. In collaboration with Associazione Basaltika. Mobility project supported by Culture Moves Europe, a project funded by the European Union. February 2025.
- 331 Amoreiras em Metamorfose. 2nd Chapter: Uma Estreita Lacuna. Collective exhibition. Curator: Nuno Faria. Museu Arpad Szenes – Vieira da Silva. Lisbon. February 13 – May 4.
2024
- 331 Amoreiras em Metamorfose. 1st Chapter: O Tecido do Mundo. Collective exhibition, celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Museum opening. Curator: Nuno Faria. Museu Arpad Szenes – Vieira da Silva. Lisbon. November 20, 2024 – February 9, 2025.
- um gesto, todos os desenhos. Collective exhibition. Ciclo O Desenho como Pensamento. Curator: João Silvério. Centro de Artes de Águeda. November 15, 2024 – February 9, 2025.
- Lições de transparência. Collective exhibition. Núcleo de Arte Contemporânea do Museu do Vidro. Marinha Grande. November 14 – January 31, 2025.
- Sognare da svegli. Collective exhibition. Curator: Carmelo Nicosia. Associazione Basaltika. Teatro Vincenzo Bellini, Acireale, Italy. October 26 – December 27.
- Première 30th. Curators: Caroline Bissière, Jean-Paul Blanchet. Centre d’Art Contemporain, Meymac. France. October 19 – January 12.
- Prémio Arte Jovem Fundação Millennium BCP 2024. Exhibition: October 17 – November 9.
- O Futuro Como Aventura. Collective exhibition. Curator: Isabel Baraona. Centro de Cultura Contemporânea 13, Cooperativa Comunicação e Cultura, Torres Vedras.
- Vila Franca. Collective exhibition. Curator: José Sousa Machado. Pedro Jaime Vasconcelos Gallery, Vila Franca de Xira.
2023
- L’Invisibile. Curator: Sofia Marçal. Museu de História Natural e da Ciência – Laboratório de Química Analítica, Lisbon.
- PEA 2023. Selected for the “Portuguese Emerging Art” book – 2023 edition, by Emerge. Book Launch on November 17 at MNAC, Lisbon.
- Dar a Mão. Artists: Alek Slon, António Olaio, Catarina Patrício, Diogo Bento, Eugenio Ampudia, Filipe Branquinho, HElena Valsecchi, Isabel Baraona, João Paulo Serafim, Luís Alegre, Luís Nobre, Luís Silveirinha, Miguel Branco, Orlando Franco, Pedro o Novo, Rita de Sá, Teresa Palma Rodrigues e o coletivo Tira-Olhos de Paula Lourenço e Sofia Silva. Curator: Orlando Franco. Espaço.arte, Campo Maior.
- O Lugar do Espectador. With Ana Pérez-Quiroga. Curator: João Silvério. Círculo de Artes Plásticas de Coimbra – Círculo Sereia, Coimbra.
2022
- Quarry Sonnets, international art residency developed by LIDA and ESAD.CR. Vale de Meios, Portugal.
- Uma Certa Prática da Atenção, group exhibition. Curator: Ana Anacleto. Paços, Galeria Municipal de Torres Vedras.
- Group exhibition. Galeria Sá da Costa, Lisbon.
- Synecdoche, solo exhibition. Text by João Silvério. Galeria Sá da Costa, Lisbon.
- Guest artist in residence at RAMA, Art Residencies of Maceira and Alfeiria (Portugal) with final exhibition, curated by João Silvério.
2021:
- I Denti della Terra – art residency in Portugal’s West Coast, with artist Davide Canali.
2020
- Art Residency at RAMA – Residências Artísticas, Maceira, Torres Vedras, Portugal.
- Insterstício, collective exhibition | Workshop with Vasco Barata. MAAT, Lisbon, Portugal.
- Exposição de Bolseiros MArt 2019/2020, Galeria Sá da Costa, Lisbon, Portugal.
2019
- Art residency at Casa Animal with Musa Paradisíaca. Fábrica da Pólvora, Vale de Milhaços, Portugal.
- Ronda da noite, final exhibition of MArt’s “Acadêmia de Verão”. “Montejunto 1” project was awarded with Fundação Carmona e Costa / MArt bursary for the 2019-2020 MArt Artistic Residency program. Lisbon, Portugal
- PLACELESS, solo exhibition. Lx Factory, Lisbon, Portugal.
- Coexistência e Negociação, collective exhibit. Museu Condes de Castro Guimarães, Cascais, Portugal.
2018
- Ar.Co Art Residency, São Carlos Theater, Lisbon, Portugal.
2025: Erotismo Místico na Índia (Mircea Eliade). Editor: SR Teste. Translation: Vasco Damásio. Images: HElena Valsecchi
2023: Portuguese Emerging Art 2023. Editor: Emerge.
Coleção João Luis Traça
Círculo de Artes Plásticas de Coimbra
Colecionadores privados
2025:
Master’s degree in Visual Arts at ESAD.CR, Caldas da Rainha, Portugal.
2024:
Stained glass techniques. Cencal, Marinha Grande.
Glass Blowing. Cencal, Marinha Grande.
2023: Atelier Design – Sopro, Arte e Design I, II, III – Glass blowing training. Cencal, Marinha Grande.
2021: “Art creation from a place” with Carla Rebelo.
2020: “Insterstício”. Workshop with Vasco Barata. MAAT, Lisbon, Portugal.
2019-2020: Resident Artist at MArt with a Scholarship by Fundação Carmona e Costa and MArt. Lisbon.
2018-2019: Courses / Mentorships. MArt, Lisbon, Portugal.
2018: “A Sombra e o seu Duplo” with Fabrizio Montecchi, Museu da Marioneta, Lisbon, Portugal
2018: Drawing and painting, 2nd year. Ar.Co. Lisbon, Portugal.
2014: “Workshop Prático para Fazer uma Escultura Básica em Madeira” with Claire de Santa Coloma – Moinho da Fonte Santa, Alandroal, Portugal.
1999 – Graduate in Public Relations – IULM, Milan, Italy.