Love is What You Want

“Tracey Emin's retrospective exhibition explores every extremity of emotion through painting, drawing, photography, textiles, video and sculpture - and via a good dose of nudity.”

Hayward Gallery, Belvedere Road, London SE1 8XT | 0844 875 0073 | More information

There has always been a rawness about Emin’s work with her notorious, eyebrow-raising pieces being said to intimately reflect her personal life. However, on occasion, her honesty comes under-fire: are her works, in part, a narcissistic PR stunt consciously laced with shock, discomfort and intrigue to boost her ever-growing, high-profile status? The major survey exhibition that is currently showing at The Hayward Gallery, quells any such accusation.

If there is one thing that this retrospective exhibition delivers, it is a feeling of authenticity. Displayed on mass, her works (that span her entire career) communicate a seemingly genuine voice open to exposing the grit, the anger and the suffering, the lust, the love and the loss that has rocked and ricocheted through her life. Unlike the rest of us, she not only has the inarguable skill to convey all this, but the guts. So what’s not to admire?

Working in every medium - text, paint, video, neon, line drawing, sculpture, textiles and memorabilia (I'm not sure which category the tampon fits into) – the works collectively offer a clever and seductive marriage of discomfort and accessibility, toughness and frailty, trauma and humour. It's a display worth getting out of bed for.

A bed-making,

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Also showing serpentine gallery Michelangelo Pistoletto Until 17th September 2011 Pistoletto’s exhibition will draw visitors through the galleries, leading them via a winding maze to hidden installations and sculptures. The exhibition will manipulate visitors’ perceptions of space, making them an integral part of the work itself. More information		Also showing Gagosian Gallery Takashi Murakami Until 5th August 2011 In his distinctive "Superflat" style, which employs traditional Japanese painting techniques to depict a mix of historical subject matter and animé within a flattened picture-plane, Murakami moves within a field of aesthetic issues and cultural inspirations. More information

My favourite places See all near hayward gallery Love (followed by lunch and a walk along the Thames) is what you want. Read article		Competition Concours d'elegance WIN A PAIR OF TICKETS To win two tickets (entry only) to the luxury lifestyle event Concours d'Elegance at Hurlingham from 27th-29th July, simply share this review on facebook. Share review | More information

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