Fashion Meets Practical: Helen Jordan

On January 7, 1928, Helen Coleman married George Jordan. She worked side-by-side with him building their fruit business. By the mid-1940’s Helen began painting whenever she could find the time. It was an interest she carried from her youth.    

During the early years it was hard for Helen to find the time to pursue her interest with all of the time the fruit farm took. But she continued her pursuit over the years. She learned to work in many art mediums including charcoal, oil, pastels, watercolor and sculpture. Her subject matters ranged from portraits to landscapes and still-life arrangements.    

In later years Helen hosted a group of local artists in her home each week. By the late 1980’s she became the artist with the longest continual residence in Sedona.    

Helen always had a sense of style when it came to her clothing. While she had to be practical in her farm work wardrobe (pants, comfortable shoes, cotton blouses), she was always stylish in dressing for her community activities. Helen’s attention to detail and style included wearing jewelry that included pins, necklaces, bracelets, and clothing that had accents, decoration, color and flare. Helen’s love of art, color, texture and composition came through in the clothing she wore daily.

Helen and George’s fruit packing shed later became the Sedona Art Barn.    

BIO: Helen Coleman Jordan (1905-1993) was born in Oklahoma. Her family moved to the Verde Valley in 1923. In 1928, Helen married Willie and Annie Jordan’s seventh child, George Jordan. Together, Helen and George built a successful fruit farming business, as well as laid the foundation for many of Sedona’s infrastructures including the first water and power systems. They also enjoyed music, art and were very involved in their church, Wayside Chapel.