Helen Teede
Biography
Born 1989 in Harare, Zimbabwe. Lives and works between Margate, UK and Harare, Zimbabwe.
Teede's recent move to the UK has re-articulated ongoing questions around belonging and accountability. Being Zimbabwean, she is keenly aware of the fraught historical connection between the two countries. Her work addresses decoloniality and ecology, using her physical context as a catalyst for bridging epistemic divides. Paint is a living medium and partner in this process, and she regards her paintings as active interlocutors. Drawaing from personal experiences as well as philosophical and poetic works,she delves into the mythologies and taboos that influence the ways we live in the wold, taking inspiration from the queer and unruly beings that huant society and remind it of its fragility. Her recent painting present such beings in a process of becoming that is both abject and hopeful.
Education and Training
Exhibitions
2025: Investec Cape Town Art Fair, First Floor Gallery Harare, Cape Town, South Africa
2025: Taona, S& Projects, First Floor Gallery Harare, New York City, USA
2024: Messe Messe 2024 (group exhibition), First Floor Gallery Harare, Harare, Zimbabwe
2024: Kuvhunura: The Harare School (Group exhibition), Fondation Blachère, Bonnieux, France
2024: Looking Towards Freedom - Womxn Artists from Africa (Group exhibition), Strauss & Co, London, UK
2024: Tracey Emin Artist Residency Group exhibition, Margate, UK
2024: MIART, First Floor Gallery Harare, Milan, Italy
2024: Landscape (group exhibition), Alice Folker Gallery, Copenhagen, Denmark
2024: Solo Section, Investec Cape Town Art Fair, First Floor Gallery Harare, Harare, Zimbabwe
2023: Paper Weight (Group Exhibition), First Floor Gallery Harare, Harare, Zimbabwe
2023: Tracey Emin Artist Residency Group exhibition, Margate, UK
2023: EXPO Chicago, First Floor Gallery Harare, Chicago, USA
2023: Messe Messe (Group Exhibition), First Floor Gallery Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe
2023: Cocoon - Solo Exhibition, First Floor Gallery Harare, Harare, Zimbabwe
2022: See You Through It (Group Exhibition), The Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Art Gallery, works from the Collection of Brad & Gabrielle Schuller, Worcester, MA, USA
2022: In the Zone (Group Exhibition), Alice Folker Gallery, Copenhagen, Denmark
2022: Sovereign Art Prize finalist exhibition, Norval Foundation, Cape Town, South Africa
2022: Making Space (online)(Aasha, Teede, Webber, Mutema, Mwandiambira, Mushate, Tauzeni)
2021: Ubuntu, collective exhibition, (Africanah Art Foundation Curator) WTO biannual meeting, Geneva, Switzerland
2021: Running – The New Contemporary (Will Wang Curator) Qingdao Art Museum, Shanghai, PRC
2021: Artemisia Nova, Paris Internationale, Paris, France
2021: I Draw Therefore I Think, South South online. First Floor Gallery Harare
2021: House Parté (Carlye Packer curator), Palm Springs, USA
2021: Mundopa, Makaza, Rizhi, Teede (Brandy Carstens, Tong Advisory curators), Tong Advisory Soho Salon, New York, USA
2021: Allegory & Intent (Butler Bowdon, Nyaude, Teede), Nomad Gallery, Brussels, Belgium
2021: Artemisia - Solo Exhibition, First Floor Gallery Victoria Falls, Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe
2021: Mirror Mirror! - South South Veza, First Floor Gallery Harare, Harare, Zimbabwe
2020: Level | Mosi-oa-tunya, First Floor Gallery Vic Falls, Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe
2019: Bare Limbs - Solo Exhibition, First Floor Gallery Harare, Harare, Zimbabwe
2019: Harare Fauves (Mundopa, Nyaude, Teed), Alon Segev Gallery, Tel Aviv, Israel
2019: Cape Town Art Fair, First Floor Gallery Harare, Cape Town, South Africa
2018: Next Level, First Floor Gallery Harare, Harare, Zimbabwe
2018: Cape Art Fair, First Floor Gallery Harare, cape Town, South Africa
2017: FNB Joburg Art Fair, First Floor Gallery Harare, Johannesburg, South Africa
2017: AKAA Art Fair, First Floor Gallery Harare, Paris, France
2017: Cape Town Art Fair, First Floor Gallery Harare, Cape Town, South Africa
2017: “Tomorrow’s Today” Cape Town Art Fair special project, First Floor Gallery Harare/Showcase Gallery, Cape Town, South Africa
2016: “Harare: Mwandiambira+Tauzeni+Teede” Hazard Gallery, Johannesburg, South Africa
2016: FNB Joburg Art Fair 2016, First Floor Gallery Harare, Johannesburg, South Africa
2016: I am because you are - Group Show, First Floor Gallery Harare, Harare, Zimbabwe
2016: “It is without.” Solo Show, First Floor Gallery: Harare, Zimbabwe
2016: "Excerpts", Solo Show, Showcase: Dubai, U.A.E.
2015: "The Material Presence of the Past", Solo Show, Showcase: Dubai, U.A.E
2015: "We Grow Accustomed to the Dark", Solo Show,. Amanzi: Harare, Zimbabwe
2015: "Waste no Waste, Trash is Treasure", Group Show, Italian Ambassador's Residence: Harare, Zimbabwe
2015: "Chimuti, Pepa, Dombo" (Wood, Paper, Rock) . Group Show. Showcase: Dubai, U.A.E
2014: "IndustrArt", Group Show. Nigel Joscelyne: Harare, Zimbabwe
2014: "Modern Painting", Group Show, Kalk Bay Modern: Cape Town, South Africa
2014: "Scripts of Our Unspoken Words", Group Show, Showcase: Dubai, U.A.E
2013: "Greatest Hits of 2012", Group Show, AVA Gallery: Cape Town, South Africa
2012: "Mistakes", Group Show, 50 Canterbury Street: Cape Town, South Africa
2012: "GRAD", Group Show, Michaelis School of Fine Art: Cape Town, South Africa
2008: FUA Graduate Show, Florence University of the Arts: Florence, Italy.
2008: "Dialoghi Muti", Group Show, Florence University of the Arts: Florence, Italy.
2008: “We Still have the Sun”, Solo Show, Richard Rennie: Harare, Zimbabwe
Born 1989 in Harare, Zimbabwe. Lives and works between Margate, UK and Harare, Zimbabwe.
Teede's recent move to the UK has re-articulated ongoing questions around belonging and accountability. Being Zimbabwean, she is keenly aware of the fraught historical connection between the two countries. Her work addresses decoloniality and ecology, using her physical context as a catalyst for bridging epistemic divides. Paint is a living medium and partner in this process, and she regards her paintings as active interlocutors. Drawaing from personal experiences as well as philosophical and poetic works,she delves into the mythologies and taboos that influence the ways we live in the wold, taking inspiration from the queer and unruly beings that huant society and remind it of its fragility. Her recent painting present such beings in a process of becoming that is both abject and hopeful.
Education and Training
- March 2023 - September 2024: Tracey Emin Art Residency
- 2020: Laurea Magistrale in Arti Visive (Masters in Visual Art), University IUAV, Venice, Italy. with 110/110 and Honours.
- 2013: Bachelor of Arts Honours in English Studies, with First Class at University of Cape Town, South Africa.
- 2012: Bachelor of Arts in Fine Art at the Michaelis School of Fine Art, University of Cape Town, South Africa.
Exhibitions
2025: Investec Cape Town Art Fair, First Floor Gallery Harare, Cape Town, South Africa
2025: Taona, S& Projects, First Floor Gallery Harare, New York City, USA
2024: Messe Messe 2024 (group exhibition), First Floor Gallery Harare, Harare, Zimbabwe
2024: Kuvhunura: The Harare School (Group exhibition), Fondation Blachère, Bonnieux, France
2024: Looking Towards Freedom - Womxn Artists from Africa (Group exhibition), Strauss & Co, London, UK
2024: Tracey Emin Artist Residency Group exhibition, Margate, UK
2024: MIART, First Floor Gallery Harare, Milan, Italy
2024: Landscape (group exhibition), Alice Folker Gallery, Copenhagen, Denmark
2024: Solo Section, Investec Cape Town Art Fair, First Floor Gallery Harare, Harare, Zimbabwe
2023: Paper Weight (Group Exhibition), First Floor Gallery Harare, Harare, Zimbabwe
2023: Tracey Emin Artist Residency Group exhibition, Margate, UK
2023: EXPO Chicago, First Floor Gallery Harare, Chicago, USA
2023: Messe Messe (Group Exhibition), First Floor Gallery Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe
2023: Cocoon - Solo Exhibition, First Floor Gallery Harare, Harare, Zimbabwe
2022: See You Through It (Group Exhibition), The Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Art Gallery, works from the Collection of Brad & Gabrielle Schuller, Worcester, MA, USA
2022: In the Zone (Group Exhibition), Alice Folker Gallery, Copenhagen, Denmark
2022: Sovereign Art Prize finalist exhibition, Norval Foundation, Cape Town, South Africa
2022: Making Space (online)(Aasha, Teede, Webber, Mutema, Mwandiambira, Mushate, Tauzeni)
2021: Ubuntu, collective exhibition, (Africanah Art Foundation Curator) WTO biannual meeting, Geneva, Switzerland
2021: Running – The New Contemporary (Will Wang Curator) Qingdao Art Museum, Shanghai, PRC
2021: Artemisia Nova, Paris Internationale, Paris, France
2021: I Draw Therefore I Think, South South online. First Floor Gallery Harare
2021: House Parté (Carlye Packer curator), Palm Springs, USA
2021: Mundopa, Makaza, Rizhi, Teede (Brandy Carstens, Tong Advisory curators), Tong Advisory Soho Salon, New York, USA
2021: Allegory & Intent (Butler Bowdon, Nyaude, Teede), Nomad Gallery, Brussels, Belgium
2021: Artemisia - Solo Exhibition, First Floor Gallery Victoria Falls, Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe
2021: Mirror Mirror! - South South Veza, First Floor Gallery Harare, Harare, Zimbabwe
2020: Level | Mosi-oa-tunya, First Floor Gallery Vic Falls, Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe
2019: Bare Limbs - Solo Exhibition, First Floor Gallery Harare, Harare, Zimbabwe
2019: Harare Fauves (Mundopa, Nyaude, Teed), Alon Segev Gallery, Tel Aviv, Israel
2019: Cape Town Art Fair, First Floor Gallery Harare, Cape Town, South Africa
2018: Next Level, First Floor Gallery Harare, Harare, Zimbabwe
2018: Cape Art Fair, First Floor Gallery Harare, cape Town, South Africa
2017: FNB Joburg Art Fair, First Floor Gallery Harare, Johannesburg, South Africa
2017: AKAA Art Fair, First Floor Gallery Harare, Paris, France
2017: Cape Town Art Fair, First Floor Gallery Harare, Cape Town, South Africa
2017: “Tomorrow’s Today” Cape Town Art Fair special project, First Floor Gallery Harare/Showcase Gallery, Cape Town, South Africa
2016: “Harare: Mwandiambira+Tauzeni+Teede” Hazard Gallery, Johannesburg, South Africa
2016: FNB Joburg Art Fair 2016, First Floor Gallery Harare, Johannesburg, South Africa
2016: I am because you are - Group Show, First Floor Gallery Harare, Harare, Zimbabwe
2016: “It is without.” Solo Show, First Floor Gallery: Harare, Zimbabwe
2016: "Excerpts", Solo Show, Showcase: Dubai, U.A.E.
2015: "The Material Presence of the Past", Solo Show, Showcase: Dubai, U.A.E
2015: "We Grow Accustomed to the Dark", Solo Show,. Amanzi: Harare, Zimbabwe
2015: "Waste no Waste, Trash is Treasure", Group Show, Italian Ambassador's Residence: Harare, Zimbabwe
2015: "Chimuti, Pepa, Dombo" (Wood, Paper, Rock) . Group Show. Showcase: Dubai, U.A.E
2014: "IndustrArt", Group Show. Nigel Joscelyne: Harare, Zimbabwe
2014: "Modern Painting", Group Show, Kalk Bay Modern: Cape Town, South Africa
2014: "Scripts of Our Unspoken Words", Group Show, Showcase: Dubai, U.A.E
2013: "Greatest Hits of 2012", Group Show, AVA Gallery: Cape Town, South Africa
2012: "Mistakes", Group Show, 50 Canterbury Street: Cape Town, South Africa
2012: "GRAD", Group Show, Michaelis School of Fine Art: Cape Town, South Africa
2008: FUA Graduate Show, Florence University of the Arts: Florence, Italy.
2008: "Dialoghi Muti", Group Show, Florence University of the Arts: Florence, Italy.
2008: “We Still have the Sun”, Solo Show, Richard Rennie: Harare, Zimbabwe
Publications and Solo Exhibition Catalogues
- Teede, H., Kabov, V. (ed). 2019. “Bare Limbs.” First Floor Gallery Harare, [online] https://www.firstfloorgalleryharare.com/uploads/8/4/1/2/8412558/bare_limbs_-_helen_teede.pdf-
- Teede, H. 2019. “Between Banality and Terror: Artistic Discourse, Collective Anxiety and Climate Crisis. The Lithuanian Pavilion at the 2019 Venice Biennale.” The Art Section: An Online Journal of Art and Cultural Commentary, [online] https://www.theartsection.com/lithuanian-pavilion-venice-biennale
- Teede, H. 2019. “Image as Testimony and Working Through Trauma in the paintings of Gresham Tapiwa Nyaude and Wycliffe Mundopa.” Something We Africans Got, January 2019, Issue no. 7: Paris, France.
- Teede, H. 2017. “The Advantages and Pitfalls of Revisiting History: ICAC Zimbabwe.” Art Africa Magazine, December 2017, Issue no. 10: Cape Town, South Africa.
- Teede, H. 2017. “Unhomed,” Showcase Gallery. Dubai, U.A.E.
- Teede, H., Kabov, V. (ed). 2016. “It is the Without,” First Floor Gallery Harare, [online] https://www.firstfloorgalleryharare.com/uploads/8/4/1/2/8412558/helen_teede-it_is_the_without.pdf
- Teede, H. 2015. “The Material Presence of the Past,” Showcase Gallery, Dubai, U.A.E.