Helen Mahood grew up in Belfast, Northern Ireland. At school she showed considerable artistic promise and was encouraged to train as an art teacher. Subsequently she gained a qualification as a medical illustrator. A move to London led to a career in the world of commercial art. Now that she is settled in Cornwall, she enjoys the opportunity to spend more time on her first love, painting.

Helen Mahood became a member of 'Taking Space', a group of women artists, in 2018.