T. G. Rosenthal, a Long-time supporter of Rego's work,discusses the background to each series, and comments on each print. He also quotes extensively from his and others' conversations with the artist, underlining Rego's subversive humour and her strongly feminist outlook. A fully illustrated catalogue raisonne by Hannah Begbie, a description of Rego's etching techniques by the artist and printmaker Paul Coldwell, a list of exhibitions, a chronology and a bibliography make this a unique source of information on a major aspect of this leading artist's work.

Many of the greatest artists since Durer and Rembrandt have used the print medium to explore some of their most important ideas. Paula Rego is in this tradition, giving full rein to her imagination in both etching and lithography,and using the media with exuberance to create work that is as disturbing, erotic and powerful as her paintings.This sumptuously produced book, with reproductions in tritone and colour, is the first monograph to deal exclusively with Rego"s graphic work. It discusses and illustrates all her prints, including unpublished work - over 200 etchings and Lithographs spanning half a century from 1954 to 2003.Many of her prints are based on themes, as she says that one image triggers the idea for the next. Among these are Rego"s Nursery Rhymes, which reveal a darkly humorous take on the difficulties of childhood, and provide a rich seam for her precocious girls and individually characterized animals.The narrative layers and emotional nuances of her work are vividly shown in her PeterPan series of 1992, and also in Pendle Witches 1996, for which she collaborated closely with the poet and writer Blake Morrison, who in turn was inspired by her 1996-98 series The Children"s Crusade. The book concludes with her most recent portfolio of lithographs,based more or tess loosely on Jane Eyre.

introduction

girl and dog 1987

nursery rhymes 1989

peter pan 1992

the crow 1994

pendle witches 1996

the children"s crusade 1996-98

the abortion series 1999

after hogarth 2000

jane eyre 2002

works out of series 1954-2003

notes

paula rego"s graphic techniques by paul coldwell

catalogue raisonne by hannah begbie

chronology

select list of solo exhibitions

select bibliography

illustration credits

index