From a heritage of signwriting, package design and 2D animation, Helm’s peculiar style of painting emerged onto the scene about 10 years ago. He said of his own work “Out of the strong came forth sweetness” but it was pointed out that he’d copied this statement from a tin of Llyles Golden Syrup, and it bore little relevance to his paintings anyhow. What is indisputable is his keen interest in birds and amateur naturalism, which is evident from his large collection of rare bird”s eggs. Lañst year was a traumatic one for Helm, seeing as it did the death of both his pet birds, Leonardo da Finchy a goldfinch canary cross who flew out of the kitchen window while Helm was taking a telephone call, and Princess, a He duck, who was ripped apart by a herd of foxes out celebrating the ban on hunting.

At the heart of Helm’s work is a humorous incongruity, be it birds singing in the parlour, or hairy walking sticks declaring their love to acanthus scrollwork. Some have dismissed his work as visual nonsense but Helm prefers to dismiss it as a collision between the outside world of nature and the inside one of cartoons and furniture. The images he conjours would simply not exist if he did not take the considerable time to create them. Painted and gilded on the reverse of glass they are at the very least easy to clean. His work is collected widely in Britain and America by celebrities and other people.

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