Carolyn Heller

CAROLYN F. HELLER Carolyn Frohsin Heller (9 January 1937 – 22 August 2011), was a Florida artist who created works of bold shape and vivid color. She was influenced by abstract expressionism early in her 60-year career, yet her style evolved to embrace an unambiguous and playful vitality that mirrored her personality. Passionate about public art, she was a member of the Arts Council of Hillsborough County and helped establish the county’s Public Art Committee. In 1997, the Tampa AIDS Network commissioned her to create its annual signature work for its Art for Life benefit.

BACKGROUND AND PERSONAL LIFE She started drawing and painting in the 1950s. Beginning with print-making, wood-cuts and acrylics on canvas, she expanded into mixed-media on fabric, furniture and other everyday items. She crafted jewelry and silk scarves. In every context, her work was sensual and full of energy.

An Alabama native, Carolyn studied fine arts at Sophie Newcomb College at Tulane University in New Orleans and continued her training at the University of South Florida in Tampa, where she lived for more than 50 years. She also studied at the Tampa Museum of Art.

She was drawn to the abstract, its free form and vibrancy in artists she admired, such as Ida Kohlmeyer, Elaine de Kooning, Syd Solomon and other abstract expressionists. Heller became known for her serigraphs and original acrylic paintings but added color to just about anything she could including fabrics, jewelry, placemats and garden tools. She painted a pool table for a customer, a chair for Florida Senator Ronda Storms and the awning outside Smith Brothers Framing Inc. along a major highway in Tampa.

Later in life, Carolyn looked to the natural, tropical world for inspiration. Her intention was irreverent and flirtatious: fruit, flowers and insects were depicted with elegance and humor. She gave her fish sly expressions and bright lipstick. She endowed her blushing pears with full-figured rear ends. Her wide-ranging works are held in private and public collections across the United States and have been featured in galleries, art shows and exhibitions in Florida and the Southeast.

She was passionate about gardening and public art. She was a long-serving member of the Arts Council of Hillsborough County, that funds cultural services. She also helped establish the county’s Public Art Committee, which selects and purchases artwork for public display. She also was a human rights advocate. Carolyn is survived by son Alan Heller; daughters Emily, Janet and Fran Heller; brothers Ralph and Henry Frohsin and five grandchildren. Carolyn’s family seeks to honor her memory in an online gallery, permanently exhibiting works from her collection.

CAROLYN F. HELLER GRANT The Carolyn F. Heller Grant is an award that was established in 2012 and is presented through the Hillsborough Arts, Inc., a support organization for the Arts Council of Hillsborough County. It is a permanent award presented annually to the top-scoring artist in the Council’s Individual Artist Grant Program. With a goal of advancing the professional growth of new and established artists in the Tampa Bay Area, the award is based partially on the impact of the artist or proposed project in the community.

The 2013 winner was Michael Parker, who painted murals along a major highway in Tampa, celebrating the Ybor City district for its rich history, tradition and diversity. The inaugural recipient was Arnolkis Turro, a Cuban born artist residing in Brandon, Florida who wanted to study art during a month-long residency at the Vermont Studio Center.

COMMUNITY AND EXHIBITIONS In addition to her work for the Tampa AIDS Network, Heller was known for helping non-profit organizations and celebrating up and coming artists from places such as the MacDonald Training Center and Pyramid Inc.

After her death, her family held a class with elementary school children and donated art to the after school program in the neighborhood where she resided, the Kate Jackson Community Center. They family also launched a memorial website and online virtual gallery of her works.

Heller's work has been exhibited posthumously at venues such as Tampa's downtown John F. Germany Library and the Tampa Museum of Art.