“We interpret the world through stories… Everybody makes sense of things in their own way, but if you have stories, it helps.” – Paula Rego 

Paula Rego: Visions of English Literature presents a major body of work by one of the most significant figurative artists of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Developed by Hayward Gallery Touring, the exhibition explores Rego’s lifelong engagement with storytelling and literature through the medium of printmaking.

One of the great printmakers and storytellers of our time, Paula Rego drew inspiration from a vast range of sources – from traditional folklore and fairy tales, to literary classics and nursery rhymes.

Paula Rego: Visions of English Literature will present three of the artist’s most ambitious and profound 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. Unseen preparatory sketches, etching plates and Rego’s very own childhood copy of Peter Pan will offer audiences an intimate portrayal of the artist’s lifelong fascination with literature and insight into how the artist transformed this material into startlingly original and unexpected pictures.

From menacing oversized creatures etched into life from children’s nursery rhymes such as Little Miss Muffet and Three Blind Mice, to the almost hallucinatory depictions of Neverland from Peter Pan and the tumultuous relationships based on power read about in Jane Eyre, Rego’s work tells stories that combine fantasy and imagination, innocence and cruelty, in order to explore the complexities of life and the experience of women in particular, in all its strangeness and mystery. Paula Rego: Visions of English Literature aims to spark new ways of seeing the world from audiences in relation to these seemingly familiar, age-old stories.

Brian Cass, Senior Curator, Hayward Gallery Touring, says:

“Throughout her life, Paula Rego used print-making as a central tool of her art. T aking inspiration from literature, she connected with stories in very πersonal ways, using them to articulate the conditions of her own life and draw her desires, dreams, fears, and traumas into sequences of remarkable pictures.

Hayward Gallery T ouring had the honour of working with Paula Rego on a small travelling show in the 1990s. We are absolutely delighted to continue this relationship 35 years later, and by collaborating with a range of exhibition patterns, celebrate her unique art and vision with audiences across the UK.”

Paula Rego’s Estate says:
“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.”

Dr Loucia Manopoulou, Director, Newlands House Gallery, says:

“Delighted to be working with Southbank Centre to bring Paula Rego: Visions of English Literature to Newlands House Gallery this May. Rego’s beautifully grotesque prints transform familiar stories, such as Peter Pan, Jane Eyre, and classic nursery rhymes, into hallucinatory, feminist visions.

Her work is both disturbing and intriguing, making visible the hidden cruelty and intensity within literature while allowing her to take control of the narrative. As Rego eloquently described the freedom and transformative power of art, ‘In my pictures I can do anything.’

This exhibition offers an intimate encounter with Paula Rego’s extraordinary imagination and her powerful, unforgettable storytelling.”

Paula Rego: Visions of English Literature at Newlands House Gallery will be complemented by a special curated series of events, including talks, workshops, and screenings.