Helena Palmeira is a London-based Brazilian artist  whose practice explores materiality as a carrier of memory. An MA graduate from Central Saint Martins, and 25/26 Sarabande Foundation Resident, she creates sculptural pieces that integrate historically and culturally significant materials, such as Amazonian seeds, native woods, and colored stones, to preserve and re-activate narratives embedded in their origins.

Driven by a commitment to highlighting Latin American materiality and it’s significance, her work questions conventional perceptions of luxury while proposing a vision rooted in memory. Her current body of work draws on the aesthetics of binding as both a visual language and conceptual metaphor. 
Inspired by experiences of migration, she explores how acts of packing, securing, and carrying can transform both object and wearer.

Helena's work has been exhibited at the 2026 Collect Art Fair at Somerset House and showcased during London Design Festival, where she received the Public's Choice Award.

Rooted in storytelling and material research, Helena approaches her practice as a space for reflection, cultural reclamation and transformation.

For inquiries, consultancy, special projects and pricing contact via e-mail

info@helenapalmeira.com
Instagram @helenapalmeira


Awards, Grants and Residencies:

Innovation in Design Award at SHINE from Mimi Hoppen/Dover St. Market

Sessùn Craft Prize 2026

Recipient of the UAL CBA Grant 2026

Sarabande Foundation 25/26 Resident

Selected for Shine 2026 at the Goldsmith’s Centre

Public’s Choice Award from Blackdot Gallery at 2025 London Design Festival

Hands-On 2025 Resident


Press:

Current Obssesion Magazine

VO+ Magazine
Selected exhibitions:

Shine Exhibition
at the Goldsmith’s Centre
London, UK
16 Sep - 18 Dec 2026

Sessùn Craft Prize Exhibition
at Galerie Joseph
7 Rue Froissart, 
Paris
10-18 September 2026

The Palace at 4AM
at Sarabande Foundation
810 High Rd
London
25-30 June 2026

The Weight of Turning
at Sarabande Foundation
22 Hertford Rd 
London
27-31 May 2026

Salone del Mobile
CSM Showcase
at Salone Satellite
Milan
21-26 April 2026

Collect Art Fair
at Somerset House 
London
26 Feb - 01 March 2026

Brazil Jewelry Week
São Paulo
28 November 2025

The Living Trace
by Cluster
79 Endell St., Covent Garden
London
21-23 November 2025

Milano Jewelry Week
Palazzo Bovara, Corso Venezia, 51
Milan
18-20 October 2025

London Design Festival
at Blackdot Gallery
9, Caledonian Road
London
19-21 September 2025

(re)Weaving Amazônia
London Climate Action Week
at 79-81 Coal Drops Yard
London
Curated by Lilian Pacce
24-29 June 2025




All pieces are handmade and one of a kind. 
Available to purchase here, or please get in touch via email for further information.

Also available at House of Bandits Gallery:
https://www.houseofbandits.co.uk/collections/helena-palmeira


01.Piece A

2025
(contact to order)
Choker

reclaimed wood, recycled 18ct gold
110 x 120 x 30mm

Salvaged wood is filed by hand, metal part hand made.
The rich texture of the wood contrasts with its minimal structure, creating a quiet tension that invites the body to become both wearer and sculpture.

Photographer: Siyan Shen
Photographer: Siyan Shen

02.Piece B

2025
(contact to order)
Pull Brooch

reclaimed wood, recycled silver and clear quartz40 x 40 x 20mm

Salvaged wood part is filed by hand, metal part hand made.
This brooch is part of a set of two, they are designed to be worn under clothing, subtly altering the body’s silhouette. 
To anchor the hidden structure to the garment, there’s a narrative of tension: one brooch “pushes” a sphere inward, the other “pulls” outward, using jarina and clear quartz to articulate this gesture.

Photographer: Siyan Shen
Photographer: Siyan Shen
Photographer: Siyan Shen
03.Piece C

2025
(contact to order)
Push Brooch

reclaimed  wood, recycled silver, jarina seed 90 x 40 x 15mm

Salvaged wood part is filed by hand, metal part hand made.
This brooch is part of a set of two, they are designed to be worn under clothing, subtly altering the body’s silhouette. 
To anchor the hidden structure to the garment, there’s a narrative of tension: one brooch “pushes” a sphere inward, the other “pulls” outward, using jarina and clear quartz to articulate this gesture.

Photographer: Siyan Shen

Photographer: Siyan Shen
Piece D

2025
Also available at: https://www.houseofbandits.co.uk/products/helena-palmeira-jacaranda-bracelete
Bracelet

reclaimed wood, recycled 9ct gold, Brazilian emerald
75 x 60 x 30mm

Salvaged wood part is filed by hand, metal part hand made.
The wood is bound, shaped by tension, closed by an emerald.
 A gesture of holding history close to the body.

    
 
Photographer: Siyan Shen
Photographer: Siyan Shen
Photographer: Siyan Shen
05.Piece E

2025
(contact to order)
Jarina Ring

Jarina seed, recycled gold
30 x 30 x 20 mm

Seed is sculpted by hand, metal part hand made.
Hand-carved from an Amazonian seed harvested sustainably by local communities, the form draws on the aesthetics of binding and restraint.


Photographer: Siyan Shen
Photographer: Siyan Shen.
Photographer: Siyan Shen
Photographer: Siyan Shen
Photographer: Siyan Shen
Photographer: Siyan Shen
06.Piece F

2025
Also available at: https://www.houseofbandits.co.uk/products/helena-palmeira-pushed-earringright  
Pushed Earrings

recycled silver, Brazilian emerald, Jarina seed
60 x 40 x 15mm


Seed is sculpted by hand, metal part hand carved from wax and casted.
Each earring wraps around the ear in its own way, asymmetrical forms that share a gesture of pressure and presence. The silver and jarina both push inward, creating tension between softness and structure, surface and depth.



Photographer: Siyan Shen
Photographer: Siyan Shen
Photographer: Siyan Shen
07.Piece G

2025
(contact to order)
Jarina Earrings

reclaimed wood, Brazilian emerald, recycled gold, Jarina seed
15 x 15 x 10mm

Seed is sculpted by hand, metal part hand made.
Hand-carved jarina bound by recycled gold wire, holding a Brazilian emerald in place.

Photographer: Siyan Shen
08.Piece H

2025
(contact to order)
Esmeralda Ring

recycled gold, Brazilian emeralds, clear quartz
20 x 20 x 15mm