Rego was one of the most significant figurative painters of the twentieth century, and her impact on the way women and their lived experience were depicted continues to influence contemporary artists working today. She was steadfast in confronting the most troubling events of her time - often head on - having lived through distressing moments in history, particularly around women’s rights and gender politics; From her adolescence under the brutal Salazar dictatorship and its Deus, Pátria e Família ideology, which confined women to a purely reproductive role, to the 1998 referendum on abortion and women’s rights in Portugal, to human trafficking, genital mutilation and domestic violence inflicted upon women.

The consequence was the creation of some of the most radical and politically charged artworks of the time, tempered by a bold visual language which referenced art historical figures but subverted them through Rego’s own social context and a strong sense of female empowerment.

Despite the gravity of her subject matter, Rego’s register was notably wide-ranging and she could just as readily confront political and social issues as more personal dynamics around sexuality, motherhood and the family home. Rooted in her own experiences, which were coloured by illness and grief in her family life, the feelings she expressed were often universally accessible. She typically drew on familiar literary references - nursery rhymes and fairy tales among them - subverting them into something recognisable but darker and more grotesque. The imagery that resulted was absurdist in quality, and became a mechanism for Rego to confront her own personal demons.

The other artists in this exhibition find their own point of connection to Rego’s work, with a thread of anxiety, fear and vulnerability running through their practices - they too draw on lived personal experiences and wider historical and political undercurrents.