Helen "Helsie" Wright

Photograph included with student application. Courtesy of Western Regional Archives

Courtesy of Western Regional Archives

FOCUS

Art/ Design/ Craft

ROLE

Student

ATTENDANCE

1941 - 1945

BIRTH

1919-10-29

Bronxville, NY

DEATH

2017-01-27

Concord, MA

Helen Wright was a student at the college from 1941 to 1945. She took Introductory to Advanced Weaving with Anni Albers, 1942-1944. She participated in the membership committee, and in many plays,. In 1945 she worked as an office secretary.

She noted in her application that she was Interested in working under Anni Albers specifically, and Albers was her advisor. She transfered from Bennett Junior College. Most professors wrote poor notes of her and didn't find her to be a good fit, but she did make it to senior examinations in the arts.

Relationships

Married BMC student, Robert H. Marden, 1944 (Buncombe County, Asheville, NC marriage license)

Obituary

Helen W. Marden died on January 27, 2017, in Concord, MA, following a lengthy illness. She was born Helen Grace Wright, October 29, 1919, in Watertown, MA, to parents Warren Mead Wright and Helen Robinson Wright. She attended The Cambridge School of Weston and Black Mountain College, in North Carolina. As a young child, Helen contracted tuberculosis, and was not expected to fully recover. Apparently, the doctors underestimated her stubborn determination. In 1944, Helen married Robert H. Marden, a fellow-student at Black Mountain College. The couple later divorced. After Robert finished military service in World War ll, the couple lived in Cambridge, MA. In 1950-51, they built a home at 30 Kendall Common Rd, in Weston, MA. They had two children. The family spent many summers at the Wright family summer home, at Fairhaven Bay, Concord. In 2004, Helen moved to West Concord. Later, she relocated to Newbury Court, a life-care facility adjacent to Emerson Hospital, in Concord. She remained independent and drove her own car until she reached her nineties. Helen leaves a son, Christopher Marden, of Colorado Springs, CO; a granddaughter, Jessica Marden, of Sunderland, MA; two step-grandchildren: John Aziz, of Groton, MA, and Heather Katie Goddard, of Groton; two sisters: Julianne Wright Neaverson, of Bloomfield, CT, and Emmalie Wright Millard, of Dallas, TX; and lifelong friends from Weston. She was predeceased in 2012 by a son, Nathaniel Marden; and in 2005 by her eldest sister, Mary Wright Cherington.

Photograph of author

Author

Amanda Hartman

Amanda Hartman is the creator of BMC Yearbook, serving as the lead director, engineer, and researcher. She holds a MLIS in archive/ collections management, MA in art/ museum education, and BA in design. After working in museums and archives for a decade, she made the transition to tech and is now a software developer specializing in applications for museums, archives, and higher education.

Her interest in Black Mountain College began while working as a digital archivist with the Asheville Art Museum's BMC archive collection. She transcribed and digitized over 1500 documents created by the college. While working closely with these archives, she began independent research on the interracial program and Negro Week activities BMC, writing biographies of lesser known students and staff members. That research transformed into this BMC Yearbook project.

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