Paula Rego, a prominent Portuguese-born British artist noted for her visceral and disturbing work, passed away at the age of 87.
“She died quietly this morning, after a short illness, at home in north London, accompanied by her family,” the Victoria Miro gallery said in a statement. Our deepest sympathies are with them.”
The painter rose to popularity after exhibiting with the London Group in the 1960s alongside David Hockney, and recently had a retrospective exhibition at Tate Britain. She spent the rest of her career advocating for women’s rights, including abortion.
Rego was born in Lisbon in 1935 as an only child. José, her father, was an electronics engineer, while Maria, her mother, studied art but never practised it.
Rego became the first associate artist in the National Gallery, cementing her place as one of Britain’s greatest living painters and figurative artists worldwide. She is best known for her subversive paintings, pastel drawings, and prints inspired by folklore. The Queen appointed her Dame in 2010, which she regarded as a “wonderful recognition.”
Her work is worth millions of pounds, and a gallery called Casa das Histórias: Casa das Histórias: Casa das Histórias: Casa das Histórias: Casa das Histórias: Casa das Histórias: Casa das The Paula Rego (House of Stories) museum in Cascais, Portugal, is one of the few in the world dedicated to a living artist. Rego ‘s first significant exhibition in the United Kingdom was not until 1987.
Rego’s demise was announced, and tributes began to flood in. On Wednesday, Portugal’s president, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, remarked, “It is a national loss.” “Paula Rego was incredibly influential not only in Portugal and England, where she lived and where I visited her in her studio in 2016, but throughout the world for many decades.”