News | September 19, 2024

Jane Eyre and Peter Pan in Paula Rego's 'Visions of English Literature' Exhibition

Come to Me, 2001 – 2002, coloured lithograph

Hayward Gallery Touring will present a new exhibition of Portuguese-British artist Paula Rego taking a deep look into the literary influences that have inspired Rego’s works.

Running September 21 - January 5, 2005 in Lakeside Arts’ Djanogly Gallery, University of Nottingham, Paula Rego: Visions of English Literature will showcase the artist’s remarkable printmaking practice. Rego (1935 - 2022) drew inspiration from a vast range of sources from traditional folklore and fairy tales, to literary classics and nursery rhymes.

The exhibition will focus on three of the artist’s series of works in printmaking, Nursery Rhymes, Peter Pan, and Jane Eyre, made across a decade of the artist’s life. Each series will be accompanied by a variety of personal items from the artist, many of which have never been publicly displayed before including unseen preparatory sketches, etching plates and
Rego’s own childhood copy of Peter Pan.

Little Miss Muffet II, 1989, hand coloured etching and aquatint

Mr Rochester, 2002, lithograph

Wendy and Hook, 1992, coloured etching and aquatint

Brian Cass, Senior Curator, Hayward Gallery Touring, said: “Throughout her life, Paula Rego used print-making as a central tool of her art. Taking inspiration from literature, she connected with stories in very personal ways, using them to articulate the conditions of her own life and draw her desires, dreams, fears, and traumas into sequences of remarkable pictures."

Paula Rego’s Estate commented: "Life with Paula was filled with stories, humour and mischief and she always seemed to have her own, surprising twist on the books she read. She often said that she had the most fun making the prints for
these series because the stories were already laid out for her, but there’s no question that she made
them her own. We’d like to thank Hayward Gallery Touring for mounting this exhibition.”