Betty Tompkins

The 73-year-old artist talks making paintings of sex in the 70s and getting her “second act” in 2002.

An exhibition at this year’s Frieze framed sex positivity in art from a feminist perspective. The success suggests a move towards mainstream praise of radical women artists — but there are still challenges to be met.

We speak to the curator of a groundbreaking new show featuring the work of four provocative female artists who repurposed porn, painted penises, and were decades ahead of their time.