Tracey Emin

Directing

Tracey Emin

Born July 3, 1963 · Croydon, Surrey, England, UK (age 63)

Tracey Emin is an English artist known for her autobiographical and confessional artwork. Emin produces work in a variety of media including drawing, painting, sculpture, film, photography, neon text and sewn appliqué. Once the "enfant terrible" of the Young British Artists in the 1980s, Tracey Emin is now a Royal Academician of the Royal Academy of Arts.

Known For

Turner: The Secret SketchbooksTurner: The Secret Sketchbooks · 2025
Turner: The Secret Sketchbooks
9.02025
MovieDocumentary
This groundbreaking documentary unlocks the hidden psychology of J.M.W. Turner through his 37,000 private sketches, drawings, and watercolours – an extraordinary archive that reveals the man behind the masterpieces. For the first time on television, these pages – Including erotic sketches previously thought to have been destroyed – are used as a window into Turner’s inner world, exposing his private thoughts, creative obsessions and emotional life. Rarely writing about himself, Turner left behind few clues to his personality. But in his sketchbooks, his restless imagination and vulnerabilities come vividly to life. They guide viewers through Turner’s life and art, revealing how his 37,000 sketches not only chart his creative evolution but also provide an unprecedented psychological portrait of a man both visionary and vulnerable.
Love Is the Devil: Study for a Portrait of Francis BaconLove Is the Devil: Study for a Portrait of Francis Bacon · 1998
Love Is the Devil: Study for a Portrait of Francis Bacon
6.11998
MovieDrama
In the 1960s, British painter Francis Bacon surprises a burglar and invites him to share his bed. The burglar, a working class man named George Dyer, accepts. After the unique beginning to their love affair, the well-connected and volatile artist assimilates Dyer into his circle of eccentric friends, as Dyer's struggle with addiction strains their bond.
Pet Shop Boys: A New BohemiaPet Shop Boys: A New Bohemia · 2024
Pet Shop Boys: A New Bohemia
9.02024
MovieMusic
Following the release of All of Us Strangers, acclaimed British filmmaker Andrew Haigh shoots Tracey Emin and Russell Tovey alongside the Pet Shop Boys in the music video for new single A New Bohemia, taken from their latest album Nonetheless – released on Parlophone, and premiering exclusively on NOWNESS. Discussing the project, Andrew Haigh said, “I have loved the Pet Shop Boys since the release of Please. I have every album and have seen them play live many times over the years. Getting to make a music video with them has been a dream come true.” “We had a lovely sunny day in Margate filming this video with Andrew Haigh, fresh from his success with All of Us Strangers," Pet Shop Boys shared. "Thanks to Andrew and all concerned, in particular the many local residents who took part, including Russell Tovey and Tracey Emin.”
Emin & EminEmin & Emin · 1996
Emin & Emin
1996
Movie
single channel video (shot on Super 8)
Top SpotTop Spot · 2004
Top Spot
5.82004
MovieDrama
Traumatic experiences shape the lives of a group of teenage girls living in the seaside town of Margate.
Finding GoldFinding Gold · 1996
Finding Gold
1996
Movie
2 minutes and 43 seconds made in 1996
Why I Never Became a DancerWhy I Never Became a Dancer · 1995
Why I Never Became a Dancer
1995
Movie
Emin uses her emotional life as the source and subject matter of her art. This takes the form of narrative or documentation of traumatic events such as the death of a family member or close friend, her rape and her abortions, coupled with the direct expression of such feelings as love, hate, anger, fear and desire. By sharing thoughts and feelings of the type for which people are generally made to feel ashamed, Emin taps into collective experience in an affirmative way.
Riding for a FallRiding for a Fall · 1998
Riding for a Fall
1998
Movie
Referred to as the Golden Mile and shot in slow motion on the beach in Margate, the town Emin grew up in, the artist rides on a horse at sunset while Delroy Wilson’s 'Riding For a Fall' plays.

Filmography

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Turner: The Secret SketchbooksTurner: The Secret Sketchbooks · 2025
Turner: The Secret Sketchbooks
9.02025
MovieDocumentary
This groundbreaking documentary unlocks the hidden psychology of J.M.W. Turner through his 37,000 private sketches, drawings, and watercolours – an extraordinary archive that reveals the man behind the masterpieces. For the first time on television, these pages – Including erotic sketches previously thought to have been destroyed – are used as a window into Turner’s inner world, exposing his private thoughts, creative obsessions and emotional life. Rarely writing about himself, Turner left behind few clues to his personality. But in his sketchbooks, his restless imagination and vulnerabilities come vividly to life. They guide viewers through Turner’s life and art, revealing how his 37,000 sketches not only chart his creative evolution but also provide an unprecedented psychological portrait of a man both visionary and vulnerable.
Pet Shop Boys: A New BohemiaPet Shop Boys: A New Bohemia · 2024
Pet Shop Boys: A New Bohemia
9.02024
MovieMusic
Following the release of All of Us Strangers, acclaimed British filmmaker Andrew Haigh shoots Tracey Emin and Russell Tovey alongside the Pet Shop Boys in the music video for new single A New Bohemia, taken from their latest album Nonetheless – released on Parlophone, and premiering exclusively on NOWNESS. Discussing the project, Andrew Haigh said, “I have loved the Pet Shop Boys since the release of Please. I have every album and have seen them play live many times over the years. Getting to make a music video with them has been a dream come true.” “We had a lovely sunny day in Margate filming this video with Andrew Haigh, fresh from his success with All of Us Strangers," Pet Shop Boys shared. "Thanks to Andrew and all concerned, in particular the many local residents who took part, including Russell Tovey and Tracey Emin.”
Tracey Emin C.V. Cunt VernacularTracey Emin C.V. Cunt Vernacular · 1997
Tracey Emin C.V. Cunt Vernacular
7.81997
Movie
Emin's video CV is an accompaniment to her work on paper, Tracey Emin CV 1995 (Tate T07632), which is a potted history of the artist's professional and emotional life from conception until 1995. This CV, read aloud by Emin, constitutes the sound-track to the video and provides contrasting background to the visual information on display. As Emin narrates her story of trauma and abuse, mixed with pleasure and success, the video takes the viewer on a journey through the artist's home. The artist is not visibly present in person until the last frames when she appears curled up naked on the floor of her sitting-room at the feet of her mother (who wears black sunglasses and looks away from both her daughter and the camera). Like Emin's handwritten CV, the video constitutes her self-portrait, in this instance adding the component of a journey around the space of her apartment to her narrating voice. -Tate

Director