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Tracey\u2019s name began to be heard in the art world during the 90s. Her goal wasn\u2019t to fill up gallery spaces: she just wanted a normal life, freedom from drama and delusions, but unfortunately her fate was different. In her autobiographical work STRANGELAND (2005), she tells us about her entrance into the \u2018world of love\u2019 at a very young age. Since then her body became the main medium through which she expresses herself. Love molded her in every single way, be that for a positive or negative outcome: it deprived her of her childhood and led her into adulthood too soon; it gave her instruments she did not know how to use; it gave her a one-way ticket and left her alone. However, it was mostly because of her troubled love stories that the artist Tracey Emin was born. Being one of the leading YBAs \u2013 acronym standing for Young British Artists \u2013 she stood at the centre of the attention for a long period of time, becoming a special target due to her controversial art. <\/p>\n
\u2018My Bed<\/b>\u2019, for a long time, wasn\u2019t even considered a piece of art and one can imagine why. It was a total scandal: a half made bed, with sheets hanging out of it, a stained carpet with cigarette butts, empty bottles of vodka, used condoms, pills, bras and panties left behind, polaroids from the night before. I bet the bed still has her body shape printed on the sheets, I even believe her perfume still lingers there. <\/p>\n
This piece of art was \u2013 or better, still is \u2013 an incredibly intimate shot of her life. She literally left an instant of her past for us to see, to remember who she once was, and who she still is deep inside. When you think about it, it is as if she gave away a piece of herself. It is definitely not an easy choice to make: it takes strength, courage and determination. Would you be able to give away a moment of your personal intimate life and make it public? Would you be able to shed a light on topics that are seen as taboos and are always \u2013 and I stress always \u2013 really really really hard to discuss? I challenge you to try.<\/p>\n
Tracey was not ashamed of her love life, because in the end she accepted herself and realized that there was nothing to be ashamed of. By accepting her past, present and future, she made her entrance into the art world.<\/p>\n Emin started experimenting with neon lights in the late 90s, pouring out messages that are deeply personal but at the same time universal statements. The artist gave us some memorable works in different colors, delivered specifically with her handwriting and not with some preset computer fonts. This choice reveals a sign of humanity that she wanted to remark once again, so that we don\u2019t forget the real essence of feelings, that even if invisible, are always palpable. <\/p>\n \u2018What color is a kiss?\u2019<\/b><\/p>\n Tracey sees it hot red. However it\u2019s not herself that she\u2019s posing the question to. She uses her body, her words, her presence, to give people a message of love and hope. oh, to trust people! She\u2019s asking us<\/i> what color a kiss is, and she gives us a chance to think about it, cause really, when was the last time we tried to give a kiss a color?<\/p>\n \u2018I don\u2019t believe in love but I believe in you\u2019<\/b><\/p>\n What is true love? The answer is subjective for each one of us, meaning that love is something that we create depending on the circumstances, but most importantly depending on who – or what – we have in front of us. There is no true and perfect concept of love. When we think about it we have this very still image, built with our ideals, our hopes and dreams. It seems impenetrable and indestructible, but a love like the one we dream about is nearly impossible to reach. There are always some adjustments to our ideal of love, and that is because we crash with other people\u2019s ideals. Never put yourself alone in an impenetrable ivory tower. Never believe in love alone. Believe in people, and in the great outcomes you could achieve by just letting yourself go. \u2018I don\u2019t believe in love but I believe in you\u2019 says Tracey. Was she right? It is for you to tell.<\/p>\n Tracey Emin – ‘I Listen to the Ocean And All I Hear is You’, 2015, photo via publicdelivery.org<\/figure>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/ekphrasis.it\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Tracey-Emin-My-Bed-1999-via-artribune.com_-1024x512.jpg\")
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