Tracey Emin and the exhibition landmark at Tate Modern
Published on 08/24/2026 at 13:16 | Editorial responsibility: Rafael MĂŒller, Editor-in-Chief AD HOC NEWS
Tracey Emin sets the tone for Tate Modern’s 2026 season with the large-scale retrospective Tracey Emin: A Second Life. As Tate Modern’s large print guide and exhibition materials confirm, the survey runs from February 27 to August 31, 2026 in London. Tate Modern documentation
The retrospective in London
The exhibition Tracey Emin: A Second Life is described by Tate and specialist press as the most comprehensive survey of Emin’s work to date, spanning roughly 40 years of practice and more than 90 works.
On view across multiple rooms at Tate Modern, the show gathers painting, sculpture, installation, video, textile and neon works, foregrounding Emin’s ongoing use of autobiographical material and the female body as central motifs.
Exhibition & Show context
Art and culture outlets such as Studio International and ART at Berlin emphasize that A Second Life places early 1990s installations next to recent paintings and bronzes, tracing key life events that inform Emin’s practice.
White Cube, which has long shown Emin’s work, notes that the Tate Modern exhibition focuses strongly on her commitment to painting, presenting recent canvases as a culmination of how she channels experience into image and gesture. White Cube exhibition overview
All news and background on Tracey Emin
For further reports on Tracey Emin’s exhibitions, market results and institutional projects, the AD HOC NEWS archive offers a growing overview of recent coverage.
The work core in the Tate survey
The Tate exhibition includes landmark pieces such as My Bed (1998), the Turner Prize-nominated installation that crystallized Emin’s confessional approach, alongside embroidered blankets, early videos and text-based works that shaped her 1990s visibility.
Recent large-scale paintings and bronzes are installed in dialogue with these earlier works, highlighting shifts in palette, bodily depiction and scale after Emin’s serious illness in 2020, a biographical turning point discussed in reporting on the retrospective.
Position within current exhibitions
Alongside the Tate Modern retrospective, Emin’s work appears in other 2025-2026 exhibitions, including Tracey Emin: There Is A Truth at Galleria Lorcan O’Neill in Rome, scheduled to run from April 30 to August 31, 2026.
Artclub listings and institutional calendars underscore that the London retrospective is flagged as a landmark show within the museum’s 2026 program, forming a major pillar alongside other large-scale surveys.
How the artist works
Tracey Emin works across drawing, painting, installation, neon, sculpture, video and textile, often combining handwritten text and imagery that draw directly on her personal history and emotional states.
Her practice has increasingly shifted toward painting and bronze sculpture in recent years, while retaining the raw autobiographical tone that first made works such as Everyone I Have Ever Slept With 1963–1995 and My Bed emblematic of the 1990s Young British Artists milieu.
Where the artist stands now
Tracey Emin’s retrospective Tracey Emin: A Second Life remains on view at Tate Modern in London until August 31, 2026, with the run date confirmed across museum documentation and current exhibition listings.
Tracey Emin at a glance
- Artist: Tracey Emin
- Medium / Genre: Installation, painting, sculpture, drawing, textile, neon
- Born: 1963, London, United Kingdom
- Place(s) of practice: Studio practice based in the United Kingdom, with strong institutional presence in London
- Active since: Late 1980s, with major visibility from the early 1990s Young British Artists exhibitions
- Key work groups: My Bed, Everyone I Have Ever Slept With 1963–1995, Neon text works, Large-scale paintings and bronzes
- Current/last exhibition: Tracey Emin: A Second Life, Tate Modern, London, February 27–August 31, 2026
- Major collections: Works by Emin are held in major public collections including Tate (London) and other leading institutions, as reflected in museum holdings and exhibition histories.
- Awards: Turner Prize nominee 1999, with continued recognition in institutional programming and honors.
- Next date: August 31, 2026 – closing day of Tracey Emin: A Second Life at Tate Modern, London
Frequently asked questions about Tracey Emin
Where is Tracey Emin currently on view in 2026?
Tracey Emin’s major retrospective Tracey Emin: A Second Life is on view at Tate Modern in London from February 27 to August 31, 2026, according to museum guides and exhibition listings.
What defines the Tate Modern exhibition A Second Life?
The show brings together more than 90 works spanning four decades, including installations, paintings, bronzes, textiles, video and neon, and is described by Tate and art media as Emin’s most comprehensive survey to date.
How does A Second Life relate to Tracey Emin’s wider practice?
The retrospective situates seminal works such as My Bed alongside recent large-scale paintings and bronzes, tracing how autobiographical themes, bodily imagery and confessional text remain central across changing media and life stages.
This article was produced with a.i. support and editorially reviewed. All statements without guarantee; auction results, exhibition dates and awards may change at short notice.
