HeHe is a Paris based art and design partnership set up in 1999 by *Helen Evans* and *Heiko Hansen*. Using a language based on light, sound and image, their practice explores the relationship between the individual and their architectural and urban environment.
HeHe. Nuage Vert, 2008. Courtesy the artists.
They have been commissioned to make site-specific works for the Centre Pompidou (Air de Paris, 2007), Luxembourg European Capital of Culture (Trans-ient City, 2007). Their recent work has been presented at Lyon Biennale of Contemporary Art (2009), St-Etienne Biennale of Design (2006), Transmediale (2008), Pixelache (2005, 2008), Vooruit (2007,2009), V2.(2005), Eyebeam (2007).
Their self-initiated project ‘Nuage Vert’ (Helsinki 2008), which illuminates the vapour emissions of a power plant, was critically acclaimed internationally and awarded three prizes: the Golden Nica in Hybrid Art at Ars Electronica (Austria 2008), the Green Prix at Zero One San José (USA 2008), and the Certificate of Honour from the Foundation for Environmental Art (Finland 2009). The process of making ‘Nuage Vert’ meant collaborating and liaising with industry, the local council, local schools, activists, journalists and citizen groups. The project raised awareness about energy efficiency and focused on reaching local audiences not necessarily exposed to contemporary forms of visual art.
HeHe. Toy Emissions (My friends all drive Porsches), New York, 2007. Courtesy the artists.
Their work often engages with complex technical processes and they often collaborate with scientific specialists from research laboratories to realise their works. They have worked with researchers at UEA Norwich, Ecole Polytéchnique, INRIA & CNRS France and Frauenhofer Germany, working in the fields of environmental sciences, fluid mechanics, electronic engineering, laser physics and computer science. Alongside these activities, HeHe have taught art and design practice at masters level with a critical emphasis on technology, most recently at HEAD Geneva and ENSCI/Les Ateliers in Paris.
Helen and Heiko trained in industrial design, theatre design and mechanical engineering and both completed an MA in Computer Related Design at the Royal College of Art, London, in 1999.