The Family

Article: Terrie Tai

Title: The Family
Work: Acrylic
Artist: Paula Rego ( Born 1935)
Work Date: 1988
Materials: Acrylic on paper mounted on canves
Style: Expressionism
Size：h213.4 x w213.4 cm h84 x w84 in
Collection: Saatchi London
 

An apparently innocent family scene is undermined by disturbing, sexually-charged undercurrents. The main action takes place between the furious youth and his determined sister who conveys an incestuous sexual thrill as she presses her body close, helping her kind, trusting mother to undress him.
 
This theme of rebellion and domination, with all its erotic undertones, provides the twist and ambiguity of the scene. The painting is representative of the style for which Rego has become internationally renowned. Simple yet sinister, her paintings are characterized by their monumentality and psychological drama. They often deal with ambiguous relations between men, women and children. Rego has also executed etchings based on her own interpretation of nursery rhymes and J M Barrie's Peter Pan, providing us with disturbing scenes from the traditional stories.