What do you think?
Rate this book
Tracey Emin: A Second Life
Step into the tender, confessional world of Tracey Emin with this stunning paperback Tracey Emin: A Second Life exhibition book.
Dame Tracey Emin is one of the most important contemporary artists of her generation. She was catapulted into the public eye in the 1990s with iconic works like her Turner Prize nominated My Bed, which sparked fierce critical and public debate, challenging what art could be. Emin’s disregard for any separation of the personal and the public, along with her commitment to unapologetic self-expression, came to define a historic moment in British culture and global art history.
Broadening Emin’s story, this monograph celebrates her raw and confessional approach as she poses profound questions on love, trauma, and autobiography. It also demonstrates her lifelong commitment to painting, showing her recent work as the culmination of the ways she has channelled her life into her art.
Published alongside a major retrospective tracing 40 years of her groundbreaking practice, the catalogue reproduces Emin's career-defining sensations alongside works never exhibited before. Through painting, video, textiles, neons, writing, sculpture, and installation, Emin continues to challenge boundaries, using the female body as a powerful tool to explore passion, pain, and healing.
Maria Balshaw is Director of Tate. She is Chair of the National Museum Directors' Council and is a Trustee of the Factory International Board in Manchester. She is also a member of the Women Leaders in Museums Network and a member of the Bizot group of leading global museums. In 2015, she was awarded a CBE for services to the arts.
Alvin Li is Curator, International Art at Tate Modern.
With contributions by Josh Cohen, Johanna Hedva, Helen Laville, and Harry Weller.
Dame Tracey Emin is one of the most important contemporary artists of her generation. She was catapulted into the public eye in the 1990s with iconic works like her Turner Prize nominated My Bed, which sparked fierce critical and public debate, challenging what art could be. Emin’s disregard for any separation of the personal and the public, along with her commitment to unapologetic self-expression, came to define a historic moment in British culture and global art history.
Broadening Emin’s story, this monograph celebrates her raw and confessional approach as she poses profound questions on love, trauma, and autobiography. It also demonstrates her lifelong commitment to painting, showing her recent work as the culmination of the ways she has channelled her life into her art.
Published alongside a major retrospective tracing 40 years of her groundbreaking practice, the catalogue reproduces Emin's career-defining sensations alongside works never exhibited before. Through painting, video, textiles, neons, writing, sculpture, and installation, Emin continues to challenge boundaries, using the female body as a powerful tool to explore passion, pain, and healing.
Maria Balshaw is Director of Tate. She is Chair of the National Museum Directors' Council and is a Trustee of the Factory International Board in Manchester. She is also a member of the Women Leaders in Museums Network and a member of the Bizot group of leading global museums. In 2015, she was awarded a CBE for services to the arts.
Alvin Li is Curator, International Art at Tate Modern.
With contributions by Josh Cohen, Johanna Hedva, Helen Laville, and Harry Weller.
280 pages, Paperback
Published February 26, 2026
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 of 1 review
August 2, 2026
Prachtige catalogus bij een fantastische tentoonstelling in Tate (londen) en later nog in Louisiana (Kœbenhavn) en in Australië (Victoria). Mooie uitgebreide documentatie, met veel achtergrondteksten, waaronder aan het slot een ontroerend essay van haar assistent Harry Weller. En echt heel fijn: close ups van de teksten op haar wandkleden en transcripties van de ingelijste teksten. Nu alleen nog een oplossing voor de video's. Al overweeg ik alleen al voor 'Why I never became a dancer' nog een bezoek aan Louisiana, vanaf oktober.
Displaying 1 of 1 review