Rachel Helfand (b. 1979, Los Angeles) is an artist who lives and works in the South of France.

Her photographic work explores the relationship between the human body and the natural world, drawing inspiration from nature, architecture, and memory. Through still life and narrative series, she examines themes of nostalgia, isolation, and place.

Raised in a family of photographers, Helfand began working with analog photography in her father’s darkroom at a young age. Photography has remained a central language throughout her life, informed by her academic background in art history and her sensitivity to composition. Influenced by artists such as Francesca Woodman and Lee Miller, as well as her grandfather Hugh Steffy, her work balances intimacy with a quiet, contemplative distance.

Her series Ghost Limbs reflects a personal inquiry into origin and belonging. After two decades living away from her native California, Helfand’s connection to the landscape has intensified rather than diminished. The work explores longing for a place shaped by memory, family history, and the physical sensations of coastline and climate. Viewed through the perspective of motherhood and return, the images consider how landscapes—like bodies—are altered over time, particularly in the context of climate change. The resulting photographs function as a meditation on loss, attachment, and the fragile permanence of place.

Helfand received a BA in French language and literature from California Lutheran University and an MA in Art History from Richmond University in London in 2005.