Detail of Love

Since the infamous exposé of her crumpled bedcovers at Tate in 1999, Tracey Emin’s work has aimed at making physical the emotions which come with our most cardinal of needs: sex, love and desire. For her latest exhibition, Detail of Love, things are no different. Once again, that characteristic vulnerability is central to the show; in these large-scale paintings and gouaches, shadowy figures rest in intimate positions – holding hands or spooning in the bed. Each title resembles a painstakingly familiar instance of affection: “there was a moment”/ “I wanted to feel safe with you”. And they aren’t just any old captions, but tiny vignettes of time which present us with both the pleasure and pain of love. And it’s the truth. Life can’t always be rosy, so if you need a moment to clench a bleeding heart or soothe your human soul, click here.