Helen Lieros


Helen Lieros, was a Zimbabwean visual artist and educator, mentoring generations of artists for over five decades. Lieros was one of Zimbabwe's most illustrious artists and had a career that spanned across six decades.

Early life and education

She was born on 3 August 1940 in Gweru, Zimbabwe to Greek immigrant parents. She studied at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts and the Centre Contemporaine de la Gravure in Geneva, Switzerland.
After wandering in Europe, Lieros returned to Zimbabwe in 1964, and took up a position as a teacher at Chaplin High School, where she had been a student.

Career

After teaching she moved to Harare in 1967, where she lived until her death. She established Gallery Delta in Harare with her husband Derek Huggins in 1975. The independent space has been involved in the curation, organisation, presentation and promotion of approximately five-hundred exhibitions. Besides being invested in her own practice, Lieros and her husband dedicated most of their career teaching and mentoring generations of Zimbabwean painters. These include Berry Bickle, Greg Shaw, Lovemore Kambudzi, Cosmas Shiridzinonwa, Gina Maxim, Misheck Masamvu, Admire Kamudzengerere, Richard Mudariki, and many others. In early 2021, Lieros was honored by the National Arts Council of Zimbabwe as a National Merits Awards Legend.
Lieros died in 2021, aged 81, from COVID-19 during the COVID-19 pandemic in Zimbabwe.

Solo exhibitions