Old King Cole (from the Nursery Rhymes series)

1989
Rego, Paula
Paula Rego first encountered English nursery rhymes aged ten at her English school in Portugal. In 1989, with a young grand-daughter she rediscovered them through a series of etchings. Following the tradition of John Tenniel's famous illustrations for 'Alice in Wonderland', she treats the fantastic realistically, dresses animals in human costume and introduces dream-like distortions of scale. She was particularly attracted to the possibility of using humour to confront terror, as she says, 'I paint to give fear a face.' Ann Jones
  • Artwork Details: Image, 22.5 x 21.5cm Paper, 52 x 38cm
  • Edition: 21/50
  • Material description: etching with aquatint
  • Credit line: © the artist
  • Theme: Figurative
  • Medium: Print
  • Accession number: ACC53/1990

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The Arts Council Collection is the UK's most widely seen collection of modern and contemporary art.

With more than 8,000 works by over 2,000 artists, it can be seen in exhibitions and public displays across the country and beyond. This website offers unprecedented access to the Collection, and information about each work can be found on this site.