1980 – West Palm Beach, Florida & Trenton, New Jersey
Helen Boehm was born in Brooklyn, New York and was educated at the Mechanical School of Optical Science. She married renowned sculptor Edward Marshall Boehm in 1944. Upon his death she assumed the responsibility of Boehm Studios and has proven to be a remarkable business leader. In 1972, the Boehm “Bird of Peace” mute swans porcelain sculpture was presented by President Nixon to Chairman Mao Tse-tung and the People’s Republic of China. In 1987, a major exhibition of Boehm Porcelains was shown in Moscow. The late Raisa Gorbachev officially opened the exhibit. To celebrate the occasion, 180 Boehm collectors from thirty-four US states formed a tour group to Moscow. The Boehm Porcelain American Bald Eagle, a gift to the USSR from the United States, was permanently placed in the Hermitage Museum. In 1989, Helen joined the Prince and Princess of Wales for a benefit polo match for which she and her artists designed the superb porcelain trophy. She also presented a life-size porcelain Madonna and Child to His Holiness Pope John Paul II for the Vatican Museum collection, which now houses six important Boehm sculptures. The first American woman to be honored by investiture into the Sovereign Order of Cyprus, among her many other honors are the Comité deExcellence Europee, an honorary degree from Saint Peter’s College, Jersey City, the Maltese Cross conferred by the sovereign order of Saint John of Jerusalem, the award of the Star of Italian Solidarity conferred by the Italian Republic, the Horatio Alger award and the Outstanding Business Leader award for Northwood.
