Entered into eternal rest.
11/24/48-3/6/2016
My heart is sad today after hearing of the passing of the amazingly talented Eva Helland.
Eva was a beautiful person, inside and out, who shared her passion for sculpting with collectors around the world.
I had the privileged of conversing with Eva via email about 4 years ago. She was an inspiration to me as she faced her cancer with grace and strength.
I will miss her.
I copied this next statement from a family member who posted on Doll Fan to share with us Eva's passing:
It is with a heavy heart that we announce the passing of Eva Helland who
peacefully went to be with our Lord and Savior this morning.
Eva Helland, age 67, best known for her real life sculptures, passed away Sunday, March 6, 2016, after a 5 year long battle with cancer. She was surrounded by her family at the time of her passing.
Prior to being ill there was not a day that went by that Eva did not have clay in her hands. Her love for sculpting came early in life in Mexico where she grew up watching her grandfather an accomplished ice sculptor. When her boys were growing up Eva was working on a project with them when a face began to emerge with the clay she was working with. This began her work as Tiny Footprints. Eva was an accomplished artist often unable to keep up with the demand for her work. She used many mediums in her work including clay, resin, and silicone and worked alongside Anne Geddes, Ashton Drake Company, and Lee Middleton.
Eva spent hours of time perfecting custom bodies for her babies and finding the perfect mix of paints and techniques to paint and create her babies. She spent years making one of a kind clay dolls and slowly began to explore other mediums to get her work into the hands of more of her collectors. She was one of the early artists, alongside her dearest friend and fellow artist Lorna Miller-Sands to use silicone as a medium for her artwork. In 2003, Eva released her first silicone baby “Nikita Helland”. Eva would go on to launch at least 6 other silicone dolls. In 2006, Eva launched a 14-inch two baby “Tiny Footprints” series, an overseas mass production of her work. This production allowed her to get smaller babies into the hands of more collectors. In 2007, Eva released her first resin doll “Aiko Sakura”.
Eva was known to be private, quiet and modest about her work. She often strived for perfection in her work and was known for her the vast amount of detail in her babies. The accuracy and precision of her work led to her be critically acclaimed worldwide as one of the best in her field.
When Eva was not sculpting she would like to walk in the mountains, explore nature, and attend to her rose garden. After becoming a grandparent, Eva focused almost all of her extra time and energy spending time with her grandchildren, who were often an inspiration for her work. After becoming ill, Eva devoted what she could for caring for and adoring her grandchildren. Eva’s grandchildren were her world and she was fortunate to spend quite a bit of time with all seven of her grandchildren. '
Eva is survived by her husband Greg, son Evron and his wife Judith, and son Brian and his wife Jenni. She is also survived by seven lucky grandchildren Eirian, Ian, Noah, Brendan, Lydia, Liam, and Ethan. Eva is survived by her seven brothers and sisters, many nieces and nephews, Aunt Marjorie, Uncle Guillermo, many cousins, and dearest friend Lorna Miller-Sands.
The family would like to thank Lorna Miller-Sands for her support over the last few years and continued support. Lorna has stepped in to repair Eva dolls, assist in the production of a last silicone line, and complete the last four Eva Helland OOAKs that she was unable to finish. The family would also like to thank Pikes Peak Hospice for their care for Eva so that she could join her Lord Savior from her home surrounded by family and the grandchildren whom she adored.
Eva Helland, age 67, best known for her real life sculptures, passed away Sunday, March 6, 2016, after a 5 year long battle with cancer. She was surrounded by her family at the time of her passing.
Prior to being ill there was not a day that went by that Eva did not have clay in her hands. Her love for sculpting came early in life in Mexico where she grew up watching her grandfather an accomplished ice sculptor. When her boys were growing up Eva was working on a project with them when a face began to emerge with the clay she was working with. This began her work as Tiny Footprints. Eva was an accomplished artist often unable to keep up with the demand for her work. She used many mediums in her work including clay, resin, and silicone and worked alongside Anne Geddes, Ashton Drake Company, and Lee Middleton.
Eva spent hours of time perfecting custom bodies for her babies and finding the perfect mix of paints and techniques to paint and create her babies. She spent years making one of a kind clay dolls and slowly began to explore other mediums to get her work into the hands of more of her collectors. She was one of the early artists, alongside her dearest friend and fellow artist Lorna Miller-Sands to use silicone as a medium for her artwork. In 2003, Eva released her first silicone baby “Nikita Helland”. Eva would go on to launch at least 6 other silicone dolls. In 2006, Eva launched a 14-inch two baby “Tiny Footprints” series, an overseas mass production of her work. This production allowed her to get smaller babies into the hands of more collectors. In 2007, Eva released her first resin doll “Aiko Sakura”.
Eva was known to be private, quiet and modest about her work. She often strived for perfection in her work and was known for her the vast amount of detail in her babies. The accuracy and precision of her work led to her be critically acclaimed worldwide as one of the best in her field.
When Eva was not sculpting she would like to walk in the mountains, explore nature, and attend to her rose garden. After becoming a grandparent, Eva focused almost all of her extra time and energy spending time with her grandchildren, who were often an inspiration for her work. After becoming ill, Eva devoted what she could for caring for and adoring her grandchildren. Eva’s grandchildren were her world and she was fortunate to spend quite a bit of time with all seven of her grandchildren. '
Eva is survived by her husband Greg, son Evron and his wife Judith, and son Brian and his wife Jenni. She is also survived by seven lucky grandchildren Eirian, Ian, Noah, Brendan, Lydia, Liam, and Ethan. Eva is survived by her seven brothers and sisters, many nieces and nephews, Aunt Marjorie, Uncle Guillermo, many cousins, and dearest friend Lorna Miller-Sands.
The family would like to thank Lorna Miller-Sands for her support over the last few years and continued support. Lorna has stepped in to repair Eva dolls, assist in the production of a last silicone line, and complete the last four Eva Helland OOAKs that she was unable to finish. The family would also like to thank Pikes Peak Hospice for their care for Eva so that she could join her Lord Savior from her home surrounded by family and the grandchildren whom she adored.
XXOO
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I lost my mom to cancer in 2013 at the age of 62 after she battled in and out of 5 remissions over 16 years. Reading this makes my heart heavy, as I know all too well the pain her family has been through, and is going through now having lost her. I've never even met her and this made me feel sad to read. My deepest sympathy goes out to her family and to you Debbie for losing a friend.
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