Completed in 2004, this major work by Paula Rego, on view with the gallery at Art Basel Paris (Booth B17), conjures an ambiguous tale from sun and shadow, illuminating illicit encounters and power struggles under the watchful eye of The Cake Woman.

Drawing upon details of her extraordinary life, on politics and art history, literature, folk legends, myths and fairy tales, Paula Rego’s art is an unflinching exploration of human relationships, her piercing eye trained on the established order as well as the codes, structures and dynamics of power that embolden or repress the characters she depicts.

In this key 2004 work, these themes are woven around wartime memories from Rego's childhood, triggered by a meeting in 2003 with her former dance teacher, Miss Cook. Recollections of life in Estoril during the Second World War, when Portugal was neutral under Salazar's regime and the seaside town became a hub for exiles, spies and refugees, were entangled with Rego's present-day concerns during the making of this extraordinary work.