The Art of Tracey Emin

by Chris Townsend (Editor), Mandy Merck (Editor), Tracey Emin (Editor)

The career of Tracey Emin, one of the best-known contemporary British artists, has become a potent symbol of the relationship between art and celebrity in our time. When it was exhibited in London at the Tate in 1999, her now notorious installation "My Bed" was denounced by conservative critics as a national scandal, but this and her other work have continued to attract ever larger audiences. Whether storming drunkenly out of live television debates, talking tearfully about her abortions, or modeling evening gowns for Vivienne Westwood, Tracey Emin makes headlines. Yet if Emin is now universally recognized as a media phenomenon, her work has also begun to attract serious critical attention. In The Art of Tracey Emin , distinguished critics from Britain and the United States address her achievement in depth for the first time, tracing Emin's influences from Egon Schiele to Judy Chicago and establishing her place in a larger tradition of postmodern and feminist art. Adopting a variety of critical approaches, contributors explore the full range of Emin's work, from photography and monoprints to installation art and videos, showing that, however raw and personal it may seem to be, it actually represents a carefully meditated response to vital issues in contemporary culture and society. 50 illustrations.

Genres: Art

208 pages, Paperback

First published November 28, 2002

Reviews

[Joetta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent discussions on Emin's complicated art and life. Very good essays and theoretical insight.

[Katy Wheatley · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lot has changed since this book was published. Tracey Emin is now a dame. Her place as a serious artist is no longer contested and her work has matured in ways that carry some of the same things that are discussed in this collection of essays but which broadens and deepens her thoughts and feelings around them. Painting is now central to her practice, which when this was published, it was very much on the back burner. This is an invaluable book if you want an overview of Emin's whole career and the different essays tackle much about her work that was being discussed in the press and wider media. A useful retrospective.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

tracey <333333

[Felix · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some of the essays certainly had… opinions.