Tracey Emin — A Second Life

Tracey Emin, A Second Life, Tate Publishing, 2026

The book of Tate Modern's Tracey Emin retrospective, the largest survey of her work Tate has ever made.

The exhibition ran at Tate Modern from 27 February to 31 August 2026 and covered forty years of work: painting, video, textiles, neon, writing, sculpture and installation. Maria Balshaw, Alvin Li and Jess Baxter curated it.

Two early works stood at its centre, Exorcism of the Last Painting I Ever Made from 1996 and My Bed from 1998. The show used them to mark her move from a first life to a second. For Exorcism she spent three weeks living in a gallery in Stockholm and started painting again, and Tate rebuilt that room.

The second life is also about her body. Ten Polaroids from 2001 hung next to ten recent photographs taken after her surgery for bladder cancer. The bronze Ascension, from 2024, is about the same body. The quilt The Last of the Gold from 2002 was shown in public for the first time, and the monumental bronze I Followed You Until The End stood outside the building.

Maria Balshaw and Alvin Li edited the book. Josh Cohen, Johanna Hedva, Helen Laville, Alvin Li and Harry Weller wrote for it, and Balshaw and Emin sat down for a new interview.

Studio International called the show "an absolute tour de force". Time Out gave it five stars.

Paperback, English. Available online and in our shop at Vester Voldgade 106, Copenhagen.