In her new series of paintings, “Our Task Was Only To Entertain”, Vancouver artist Sophia Lapres explores visual pleasure and its relationship to the female figure in advertising and entertainment. Here, she appropriates images and text from erotica and pulp fiction to examine the psychology of male desire and the way it is communicated through media.

“She Was a Virgin, But That Didn’t Seem to Bother Her—She Never Even Mentioned It”, 2021 oil on canvas 91.44 x 76.2 cm

“She Will Study the Growth of Algae at the Bottom of the East River”, 2021 oil on canvas 76.2 x 60.9 cm

“I’m Not Trying to Blame Her, Not Saying That a Woman Led Me on the Path of Iniquity”, 2021 oil on canvas 60.96 x 50.8 cm

“I Went to a Psychoanalyst Four Days a Week Up Until Last Month When the Analyst Told Me Some Things I Didn’t Want to Hear and I Walked Out”, 2021 oil on canvas 182.88 x 152.4 cm

“I Was Driving Along With That Young Girl, Once High On Goof Balls, Dead in My Back Trunk”, 2021 oil on canvas 121.9 x 76.2 cm

“I Took it Upon Myself to Give Her a Sweet Sixteen”, 2021 oil on canvas 101.6 x 88.9 cm

“(GOD) THE PROSECUTOR LOOKS HOT RIGHT NOW”, 2021 oil on canvas 101.6 x 76.2 cm

“She Was a Virgin, But That Didn’t Seem to Bother Her—She Never Even Mentioned It”; 2, 2021 oil on canvas 101.6 x 76.2 cm

Sophia Lapres’ Website

Sophai Lapres on Instagram

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