Studio Visit: Helga Roht Poznanski | Institute of Contemporary Art/Boston

Helga Roht Poznanski (b. 1927, Tartu, Estonia) is a watercolorist, painter, and fashion designer who expresses a strong sense of color, composition, and spatial architectonics in her prolific practice. Poznanski fled Estonia in 1944 for fear of Soviet repression, moving to Austria, Canada, New York, and ultimately Boston, where she graduated from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts.
She speaks here about working every day, fleeing Russian forces, staying original, and why there's no life without art.
Poznanski is one of four featured artists included in the 2019 James and Audrey Foster Prize exhibition at the Institute of Contemporary Art/Boston. On view is a selection of recent abstract and colorful collage-like watercolors characterized by a complex pictorial space, with nested and overlapping forms, windows and portals, moons and suns, evoking fractured views of a cityscape. Learn more at icaboston.org.

[@evelynhearnsberger660]

Such a lovely lady. I’m happy I came across this video. Thank you for sharing.

[@iHanna]

Thanks for producing & sharing this video and this beautiful painter lady, it warms my heart to see her still getting joy out of painting! 💕

[@ICABostonVideos]

Our pleasure!

[@4paws70]

Beautiful work and true inspiration, art is life and we all paint our own picture. What a collage we all make.

[@malisoltani6404]

Hiiii rally enjoyyyyyy thx a LOT..... painting give me to calm more and more now adays . With lov and sunshine.🌹👏🏼🥰😊🌹

[@globalarts4440]

Absolutely fantastic and inspiring painter - came upon this clip by chance and it absolutely made my day.

[@benitaferreira7946]

Helga you are a remarkable Diva and Mentor 🙌💯Thank you for sharing. Love you 😘

[@sharonbell8895]

thank you Helga for your Art and sharing the wonderful experience in creating ,,,love life and sunshine to you

[@rosalinegeorgineagaatsz7644]

Thank you for sharing,love your beautiful paintings.

[@Anna-pv4tv]

Very, very inspiring. Thanks for sharing, thanks Helga!

[@fatoomgierdien2181]

Thank YOU MUCH for Your Gifts of Wisdom and Hope. MUCH appreciated. From Cape Town.

[@Zoomfreaky]

Very inspiring! Thank you! Life is art! Yessss!

[@jasonsumair9725]

I like her style its nice to see her drive and love for art. Im inspired and this video brought a smile to my heart ..

[@daniellekorneliussen4244]

What a joyous moment this is for me to have made the discovery of your chanel‼️❤️

[@milandragojlovich5500]

Very inspirational and inspiring...may the young people, inexperienced in pain, fear and suffering, attempt to imagine, “live” (in their minds) what was said...it will do much good, it will inspire many to do good, to live and do more what really matters....and do away with much that does not matter...

[@susalu100]

Such a nice interview! Loved it!

[@goldenrayofcentralsun1111]

Beautiful art, love vivid colours. 👍❤️

[@margorowe9052]

💙💫❤🌹such inspiration..color is stellar and she is very disciplined..loved this🦋🦋💙💙🌹🌹🍒🍒

[@Hennacrone1]

“If there wouldn’t be any art, there wouldn’t be any life, would there?” Taking that with me... thank you.

[@RC-l8bl00mr]

This was extremely inspiring and touching. Brought tears to my eyes! Thank you, Helga!

[@mikeortega6072]

What a wonderful video, must watch it again ~

[@kanchangupta2038]

Dear respected Mam.. u fill our life with art.. everything is art..

[@AdTu2]

Thank You for sharing.

[@silviasellerio728]

This lady rocks! I need to check out more of her collages!

[@josd6387]

Great video. What a wonderful artist.

[@Serendipitous247]

Wow, She is Awesome....very inspiring 🤗😍❤️

[@agatarek_pl]

adore, thank you

[@crystalmar.s]

I'm amazed. Thanks for sharing 🙏🏾💜

[@livinggreen7630]

God Bless you Ma'am, I love your perspective of your life and the things you went through.

[@trenaoelschlager3981]

This was beautiful! After reading comments below that are negative....I am reminded how much I detest the snobbery and judgmentalness of some who think they are true artists and know everything. Being an artist means seeing the beauty in most all things...and when you for some reason can't find it....why not just stay silent!

[@omarte7774]

Thank you very much! 👍👍👍

[@gailbrule1744]

What an inspiration! And a wise woman.

[@keatsgipsy9991]

Lovely interview

[@robot7759]

Grand lady. Respect.

[@sarasarah8653]

You have inspired me to create and do better.. Thank you

[@zlatko216]

Thanx for inspire!Best artis

[@AsiyaBajwa]

Lovely!

[@slaphome8117]

Wonderful woman wonderful paintings.

[@vanhawk1074]

Awesome art .

[@linemillotte2885]

J’adore ❤

[@subliminalart.1637]

Amazing lady.🥰

[@jennifertate4397]

Art, not bombs. Creation, not destruction. Love, not hate.

[@byKuczoraArt]

Lovely

[@klarakrok]

Moving escentials playfull serious magic

[@paulvallance4347]

what a lovely lady

[@christianegonbarnthaler1426]

super art

[@mohammedaasri2774]

Execelent

[@Columbia-Brightlight]

🎆INSPIRATIONAL🎆

[@andreeam2037]

She is lovely. For her age she is incredible strong, incredible:)

[@MicheleTheberge]

I had to laugh! I just did that with my husband! I recently finished abstract painting that I painted flat from all directions. I asked he told me which way he thought it should go. 😊

[@harrisonthompsonabdullah4877]

Art makes life living, art makes living lively, art & life is inseparable.. Life without art same as a room without oxygen!

[@HiThereHeyThere]

Love that her husband participated in her art, choosing which side was up 😊😊

[@ICABostonVideos]

Us too!

[@Dana-ty3in]

🌹

[@merritrini9342]

Energía

[@mitchsell2321]

Nice

[@jayantimajumdar2341]

It's very good

[@jayantimajumdar2341]

It's very good but didn't subscribe

[@brankaveselinovic8621]

More on this amazing artist: www.helgarohtpoznanski.com/about

[@unarcobalenointornoalsole6782]

Jessica Fletcher at her best😁

[@fabioortiz8054]

Sin subtítulos en español muchos no podemos asimilar nada

[@NancyMartinMysteries]

Her colors imprisoned in strict lines and geometric shapes illustrates her early life, escaping war and seeking color. My view, anyway. I would love to hear a psychologist interpret her work.

[@alenanik2244]

"I never say I am an artist.... I am a painter"

[@lifeasis266]

Me too:)

[@malcolmmulvihill4972]

yes there is a fugitive quality here, Honest ? on verra, she aint an Estonian

[@lynncraig6151]

She said it's the most difficult medium....you can't correct it. That's not true but it sounds good . I've painted in Watercolors for years. You can correct your mistakes. And it's not the most difficult.... it's the cheapest medium if you are poor and can't afford Oil supplies.

[@dixi3150]

ART? SERIOUSLY? Its more like hmmmmm.......

[@1hayes1]

I gotta agree.

[@alfrancis8]

She has painted almost daily for 80 years. Like it or not, its 80 years or creativity. Not everyone needs to like her work, but to brush it off just like that is careless and disrespectful.

[@1hayes1]

Thankfully, respect for persistence is not a criterion for judging art.

[@alfrancis8]

@@1hayes1 'Judging Art'. Whats the criteria for judging art? Firstly, they hardly showed much of her work, a few pieces of her later work. We have no idea how it evolved here or what she produced before. What Picasso produced in his early years look nothing like what he did in latter years. Some would prefer his earlier more classic works. This lady has won some awards and recognition. Who are these judges, I assume they know art. I did not say anything about judging her art, what I am saying is from this short video we can hardly tell her lifetime of work and it IS disrespectful to call her creation NOT art just because you do not see them as such. I don't particularly favor what they showed either but I wouldnt call someone not an artist. I would just say, not my cup of tea. Its a unique way to use watercolor though, would love to hear more from her on how she evolved the use of it. There is a lot that we can learn just from someone else doing the practical research.

[@1hayes1]

​@@alfrancis8 I see that I agreed to the original comment far too uncritically. I should not have questioned, and did not intend to question, the work's status as art. It is undoubtedly art, it is just not art that I care much for. Thanks for calling me out on a cavalier, unthinking comment. I do however, maintain deep reservations about the contemporary project, being advanced by a younger generation of critics, of promoting the work of elderly artists in the name of a re-visioning of art history. History is not a social justice project - it owes no one 'their due', as is now said so often. That is not to deny the reality of historical bias - that is indeed real, but it cannot be compensated by a last moment of glory. Besides, this project is too often complicit with the effort to brand and market large caches of mediocre art of the last half century, or its institutional equivalent, which is usually a matter of proving some artist's 'relevance' to topical discussions.

[@eg-g]

another selfish artist.