Maria Balshaw – författare

Step into the tender, confessional world of Tracey Emin.Dame Tracey Emin is one of the most important contemporary artists of her generation. She was catapulted into the public eye in the 1990s with iconic works like her Turner Prize nominated My Bed, which sparked fierce critical and public debate, challenging what art could be. Emin’s disregard for any separation of the personal and the public, along with her commitment to unapologetic self-expression, came to define a historic moment in British culture and global art history.Broadening Emin’s story, this monograph celebrates her raw and confessional approach as she poses profound questions on love, trauma, and autobiography. It also demonstrates her lifelong commitment to painting, showing her recent work as the culmination of the ways she has channelled her life into her art.Published alongside a major retrospective tracing 40 years of her groundbreaking practice, the publication reproduces Emin's career-defining sensations alongside works never exhibited before. Through painting, video, textiles, neons, writing, sculpture, and installation, Emin continues to challenge boundaries, using the female body as a powerful tool to explore passion, pain, and healing.

‘Public institutions do not sit “outside” society, they are the barometer of time and place. How museums and galleries open themselves up to change and engage dissenting voices is not obvious or easy, but as a recent visitor said, “Art is an invitation to a conversation” – so perhaps our role might be to unlock that conversation.’As the world adapts to the consequences of a global pandemic, museums continue to experience unprecedented disruption and change. At the same time, there is a growing debate and dissent over what museums are for, who they speak to and what the histories, objects and ideas they are tasked with holding reflect – all taking place within a public sphere that feels increasingly dynamic and volatile.Taking a wide-ranging and thought-provoking look at the roles and responsibilities of some of our most well-known and best-loved public institutions, Gathering of Strangers explores the critical challenges and opportunities for the museum at this point in the twenty-first century. Moving from the historical origins of the gallery to important current debates taking place around art and public engagement, the climate emergency, race equality and decolonisation, and the value of the arts in education – this book sets out the role of art and artists in imagining and shaping our collective future.It is also a love letter to the museum, from a sector leader who is at the forefront of the cultural conversation today.