ELIZABETH PRENTIS

Elizabeth Prentis is a UK-born, Lisbon-based artist whose work merges painting and performance in an exploration of sexual pleasure and patriarchal power dynamics in heterosexual encounters. Bold and direct, Prentis' paintings are often confronting, challenging the audience on their own boundaries and expectations. Prentis' practice is not tied to one medium in particular—paintings act as blueprints for sculptures, performances, video-art, props and art installations—the process is open-ended and experimental.

ABOUT THE WORK:

In this painting, Prentis renders herself as a caricature, legs spread astride a carousel where all the horses have turned into mythical centaur versions of her past lovers. These creatures toggle between human and animal, thus confronting the often rejected potential of the body to escape its own confines and delve into interspecies territory. The carousel, once a most idyllic childhood landscape, becomes a bizarre sex game. By confronting these taboos, Prentis encourages a wider discourse surrounding sexual exploration and female pleasure.