Heleen joined AkzoNobel’s Global Aesthetic Center in 2009. Firmly established as the company’s spokesperson on trends, color, (interior) design and architecture, she has a passion for helping and inspiring people to find the right colors and color combinations for their living environment. Under her direction, the Global Aesthetic Center offers color and design inspiration, color tools and assets to make color choice easy and hassle-free for customers and consumers in the 80 countries where AkzoNobel sells paint. The starting point for the team’s color design is its annual ColourFutures trend forecast, the culmination of expert research into global trends, insights and consumer behavior.

Heleen’s creativity stems from her early childhood, when she used to play with her architect father’s design board. She launched her design career after graduating from the Royal Academy of Arts in The Hague, the Netherlands – and spent 20 years as an interior stylist/design editor before moving on to publishing roles, where she could continue to hone her talent for “making everyday life more beautiful” through color and design. Heleen has also taught at the Artemis Design Academy in Amsterdam and is the editor of more than ten books on interior and color design. Adding color to people’s lives – and seeing its transformational effect on their mood and well-being – Connect with Heleen on LinkedIn is Heleen’s raison d’être