A Guide to the Work of Tracey Emin
Her work is deeply personal and confessional, sometimes uncomfortable to witness
06/08/2025
Tracey Emin stands out as one of the most influential and provocative artists to emerge from Britain in recent decades. Her work is deeply personal and confessional, sometimes uncomfortable to witness, challenging the art world to rethink the boundaries of artistic expression. Her work spans multiple media: painting, drawing, photography, film, installation, and neon.
Emin was born in 1963 and raised in the seaside town of Margate, training at the Medway College of Design, the Maidstone College of Art and later the Royal College of Art in 1989. Her early years were marked by trauma, and the difficulties she experienced became the raw material for her work. They gave her work the searing honesty and vulnerability which has become her signature.
Tracey Emin 'Sam and Jay's birds'
In the 1990s, Emin was a prominent member of the Young British Artists (YBA), a collective that included Damien Hirst, the Chapman brothers and Sarah Lucas. Their works were considered shocking and irreverent, prompting critics to question whether they could be regarded as ‘Art’, but they also created a media storm and global fascination.
Emin’s work stood out for its raw emotional honesty. Some of her best-known works from the decade included Everyone I Have Ever Slept With 1963-1995 (1995), a tent embroidered with the names of everybody she had shared a bed with, be they sexual partners, family members, or platonic friends. Displayed at the iconic Sensations exhibition (1997) of Charles Saatchi’s collection at the RCA, the work caused a furore, frequently misinterpreted, but also a testament to Emin’s fearless, confessional approach.
My Bed (1998), featuring an unmade bed surrounded by the detritus of an unhappy time in Emin’s life; empty bottles, stained sheets, underwear and used condoms, was shortlisted for the Turner Prize and mired in controversy, sparking debates on the nature of autobiographical art and the female experience. Sold at Christie’s in 2014, it fetched £2.5 million, a sum reflecting the artist’s status.
Other significant examples of her work include the neon pieces of her distinctive handwriting, such as Love Is What You Want, More Passion, and I Want My Time With You, and her drawings and paintings, which continue to explore the themes of loss, sexuality and female identity.
Exhibited in major museums and galleries worldwide, Emin’s boundary-pushing work has made a lasting impact on the discourse around contemporary art and society. Her established reputation means that there is a competitive market for her work, as it continues to resonate with collectors and attract substantial prices.
Tracey Emin 'I Think of You Touching Me'
The expert team of valuers here at Dawsons have marketed and sold many pieces of Emin’swork. Recent sales include a signed, dated, and titled lithograph called Birds 2012, which reached £9,500 (April 2025). Our bespoke in-house marketing to a global audience of over 10 million potential buyers means that bidding is competitive and helps secure the highest prices for clients at our Fine Pictures, Prints and Sculptures sales.
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