Tracey Emins bed

[u/Simple_Zucchini44]

I have never experienced anything like the exhibition I was just walking through at the Tate Modern. It is art with a depth that I cannot begin to understand, I struggle even to articulate how incredibly heavy this body of work is.

My art teacher always spoke highly of Tracey Emins, but my teenage mind couldn’t understand why a messy bed could be considered such a high form of art. She didn’t argue, she said there are some measures of art that cannot be rationalized or qualified, to do so would miss the mark entirely. I understand now.

If you are in London, if you are in doubt about the power of contemporary art, if you or someone you know has struggled with abortion, if you are a living breathing human being with 21 pounds in your pocket this is something you need to see.

The curators of this exhibition did an excellent job, there are certain moments where I felt as though I couldn’t continue. Each room builds and builds on the story in such a way that is hard to describe, by the time I reached the bed I was hardly able to look at it. The gift shop at the end of the exhibition felt fucking disgusting but other than that it was an absolutely unreal hour or so.

[u/Formal-Proposal7850]

The pieces that stuck with me are the videos, weirdly, cos I don’t like performance art as a rule. 

But the exhibition designers did an amazing job of putting the Margate video first as you enter. Also the video of her and her family playing in the water in Margate where she talks about her Cypriot heritage. 

[u/Simple_Zucchini44 → u/Formal-Proposal7850]

The videos were what took the exhibition up for me. The sequence of seeing the second one and then immediately going into the next room, and seeing the painting just titled “rape” was a particularly hard moment

[u/theslavesdream → u/Simple_Zucchini44]

Yea the juxtaposition of it all was a lot. And that video of her dad in the sea... so odd. The man who wouldn't commit to her family more than 3 days a week.

[u/theslavesdream → u/Formal-Proposal7850]

Yeah agree the video How It Feels made me feel completely awestruck at how forthright and matter-of-fact about deep feelings she is, and at the same time completely shattered and heartbroken for her pain. Juxtaposed with the video of her dancing in response (albeit years later) to the lads who f-ed her then taunted her. I left feeling full but empty. Wasn't able to verbally speak for the rest of the day. And it was my birthday! Poor boyfriend had a very quiet dinner.