The Beginning Of Me
The Beginning Of Me
Signed Print
Tracey Emin
£1,100-£1,650Value Indicator
$2,250-$3,400 Value Indicator
$2,000-$3,050 Value Indicator
¥10,500-¥16,000 Value Indicator
€1,250-€1,900 Value Indicator
$11,500-$17,000 Value Indicator
¥220,000-¥330,000 Value Indicator
$1,500-$2,200 Value Indicator
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46 x 52cm, Edition of 175, Screenprint
Medium: Screenprint
Edition size: 175
Year: 2012
Size: H 46cm x W 52cm
Signed: Yes
Format: Signed Print
Last Auction: April 2025
Value Trend:
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Meaning & Analysis
This screenprint was created by Tracey Emin in 2012, and forms part of the Reclining Nudes collection. Like most of her autobiographical body of work, the nude is a self-portrait, and is executed in blue ink. At the centre of a white paper background, Emin’s nude figure is composed of a series of disjointed and fluid lines. To the right of her abstracted figure is more expressive mark-making, which seems to take the form of a face.
Of this passionate self-portrait, Emin has described herself as being “slightly embarrassed by its openness, almost like an invitation”. Inspired by a series of drawings the artist made back in 2006, this print is therefore a collaborative work between Emin past and present. By referring to this drawing made six years before the screenprint, Emin imagines herself “from a long time ago, a time when I felt very different. A time when sex was all important and primal”.
While sex has indeed always been a crucial element of Emin’s life and art, her attitude towards her own sexual energy has developed throughout her lifetime and career. The Beginning Of Me is a rather unusual work because Emin usually draws herself in the present rather than working from older studies of herself. By referring to preliminary drawings made in her younger years, this screenprint therefore offers viewers a glimpse into Emin’s self-exploration through her practice.
Tracey Emin, born in 1963, stands as a fearless provocateur in the contemporary art scene. A trailblazer of the Young British Artists (YBA) movement in the late 1980s, the artist has sparked conversation and controversy for decades. Confronting themes of love, trauma and femininity with great vulnerability, Emin's work is a visceral tapestry of her life and has forged an intimate dialogue between artist and audience. In 1999, this raw approach to storytelling won her a nomination to the Turner Prize and, in 2007, it got her a coveted spot as a Royal Academician at the Royal Academy of Arts (RA).
