The house of the weird

There is a lovely article here on the fabulous Paula Rego.

Lord, it makes me feel old, though. It mentions her first exhibition in 1987 - 22 years ago! - and I think this may be the one that I went to. Or perhaps I became aware of her when she was shortlisted for the Turner. 

At any event, it was a long time ago. 

In the 1980s I was quite bowled over by her pictures, which are very unsettling, taking you into the territory of the Brothers Grimm. I cut out and kept this painting (left) The Policeman's Daughter for many years, which tells me some unknown story about the past. Her painting The Family (below) is equally scary.

Nor has her work eased up over the years - she is one of those splendid artists who know what art is about, though I'm sorry to hear she's 74 now - it would be nice to have her around for another 40 yers. 

Anyway, - read the article, which mentions a new museum of her work in Lisbon - a rare tribute to a living artist.

And check out her paintings on the Saatchi site.