Paula Rego & Carlo Crivelli - two halves of the same coin?

If you’ve never seen yourself as a Renaissance man or woman, contemporary artist Dame Paula Rego may persuade you to look again.

Section of Paula Rego’s Crivelli’s Garden

Not all that different - Paula Rego & Carlo Cravelli

Paula Rego’s 10-metre long mural, Crivelli’s Garden, was commissioned by the National Gallery London between 1990-92. It is inspired by the 15th century Italian artist Carlo Cravelli’s work La Madonna della Rondine (Madonna of the Swallow) it was painted after 1490 for a small Chapel. The work is large measuring 2.5 metres from floor to ceiling. Both artists works can be enjoyed at the national.

Section of Carlo Crivelli’s - La Madonna della Rondine (The Madonna of the Swallow)

So how do these two works rooted in very different historical periods speak to each other across the ages. Look closely at the base (Pradella) of Carlo Crivelli’s larger alter-piece.

Carlo Crivelli - Predella of Madonna della Rodine completed after 1490. Egg and oil on poplar, measurements H 150.5 × W 107.3 cm.

You will notice a bewildering amount of content, all in what looks like real space. Although the landscapes don’t quite join up giving it a surreal dimension and tension. Carlo Crivelli’s work is full of wit, life and danger. All of which is mirrored in Rego’s mural.

Crivelli’s Garden 1990 - 1991, acrylic on canvas by Paula Figueiroa Rego (1935–2022). Presented by English estates, 1991.H 190 x W 944.6 x D 2 cm

There is enchantment at every turn in both Crivelli’s and Rego’s works and both are packed with narrative detail. Crivelli like Rego was a brilliant colourist and story teller, he also like Rego had a strong linear and decorative sensibility. Both pieces are full of imagination, incident, magic and Christian symbolism.

What sets them apart

Crivelli’s 1490’s depictions of women are patriarchal and set within a medieval world view. Rego flips this on its head by adding a twenty first century feminists twist. The Virgin Mary, Saint Catherine, Mary Magdalene and Delilah are all powerfully depicted and are illuminated against a contemporary backdrop. The Portuguese artist uses national Portuguese blue and white tiled walls to offset the scene.

Rego’s Crivelli’s Garden at the National Galllery London until 29 October 2023. Along with Carlo Crivelli’s La Madonna della Rondine (The Madonna of the Swallow)