Tracey Emin Artwork

Savanna Santiago

Tracey Emin is an English contemporary artist who pushes the social norms and boundaries with her paintings and sculptures. She is a self proclaimed feminist this is portrayed in her art. Her paintings are often direct confessionals of her life because she uses events and objects from her past that inspires her art. Her paintings tend to be nude women and men. Some of these paintings may be considered too explicit or brash, but that is what makes Emin so unique. She is not afraid to show her idea of what femininity is. Her paintings do not show women with perfectly shaped bodies that may be considered more desirable to men in society. She paints women realistically; with pubic hair, some rolls of fat on the stomach or side, lumps and bumps, just overall not the picture perfect cookie cutter body that society tends to portray and expect of women to look like. Emin's art is so autobiographical that she aired her own dirty laundry, quite literally. One of her most famous and well known pieces of art is neither a painting or drawing. In fact, she made an art piece displaying her own bed that she slept in. The sheets were unmade, bottles of alcohol on the side of the bed, used cigarettes, dirty socks and slippers, empty bottles, and even used condoms and bloody underwear. This was put on display at the Tate Britain exhibition. This piece of artwork pushed the social norms because something as personal as this had never been put on display as art. Using dirty clothes and used bottles and just things that you would find in a person's bedroom that hadn't been tidied up yet, was being put on display. I believe this piece of art was received with high praise because it depicted what a real bedroom would look like if a person didn't know someone was going to take pictures of it. Many people make their made and clean up their room because company may be coming over. On a normal day, your room might be somewhat messy. And I think that is what struck observers, the fact that the art depicts real life. To add to Tracey Emin's art resume, she started the neon word light art. Quotes such as "Wanting You" and "Kiss me, cover my body in love" are lit up with neon lights on a solid black background. There are raunchy quotes but it is sensual art that is inspired by deep emotions, intimacy and feminism.

Tracey Emin, "Everyone I Have Slept With", 1995

Tracey Emin, "My Bed", 1988

Tracey Emin, "I Promise to Love You" Collection, 2015

Tracey Emin, "Blinding", 2008