Tracey Emin - Contemporary Art Evening Sale London Tuesday, October 12, 2010 | Phillips

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  • Provenance

    Donated by the artist

  • Catalogue Essay

    Perhaps best known for her provocative autobiographical installations My Bed and Everybody I Have Ever Slept With, Emin’s neon works revoke the confrontational tone of the aforementioned works in favour of more heartfelt symbolic meaning. She has used neon consistently throughout her career, taking full advantage of its commercial connotations as shop signs with eye grabbing potential. This sub-genre of her work is a direct precedent of Bruce Nauman’s neon signs however, where his are mostly confined to a capital format, Emin’s are always written in her own handwriting denoting them as her most confessional and powerful works. Typically dealing with subjects of love and sex, occasionally graphically such as in Is Legal Sex Anal? or romantically as is the case with I Never Stopped Loving You, these texts convey her distinctively honest tone with personal fervour.
     
    This lot is an edition of the commissioned work completed by Emin for her hometown of Margate that expresses a personal attachment to the declining seaside resort: “It’s a declaration of love for Margate from me, but also what I want in the summer – why go to Brighton for a dirty weekend – come to Margate. I want people to come off the train, I want them to walk along the seafront, I want them to hold hands and to have a snog and say ‘I never stopped loving you’.”
     
    TURNER CONTEMPORARY, MARGATE
     
    The new Turner contemporary gallery, designed by David Chipperfield, is being built at the northern point of Margate bay, Kent. When it opens in Spring 2011, it will be the largest art gallery in the south-east of England outside London and will serve as a catalyst for the regeneration of this historic sea-side town and the local area.
     
    Turner contemporary takes inspiration from JMW Turner, who spent much time in Margate. a vibrant and ambitious exhibitions programme will feature work by major historic artists alongside contemporary art that is as innovative and daring now as Turner’s own work was in the 19th century. There will always be work by Turner on display in the gallery, whether large scale exhibitions or significant individual pieces of his work. A commitment to learning and the enjoyment of art lies at the heart of Turner contemporary. Working to engage a diverse range of people, the Learning Programme will create opportunities for those in their early years through to older people, in both formal and informal education. It will also continue to create projects that enable people from across generations to interact, contributing to a sense of community cohesion.
     
    “Turner contemporary promises to become an exciting new voice in Margate and the country’s broader cultural landscape. Its programme will appeal to diverse audiences and will explore relationships between the art
    of the past and that of today.”
    Sir Nicholas Serota, Director, Tate
     
    “The brilliant thing about Turner contemporary is that it has given people hope that things are going to change here and also put Margate back on the map.”
    Tracey Emin, artist
     
    Turner contemporary art Trust and Phillips de Pury would like to thank Tracey Emin for so generously donating this artwork for auction.
     
    Turner contemporary art Trust is a registered charity, number 1122665.
     

This work is sold to benefit Turner contemporary art Trust which is raising money to support the building of Turner contemporary, a new world-class art gallery in Margate, Kent.

47

I Never Stopped Loving You

2010
Pink neon.
23 × 179 cm (9 × 70.5 in).
This work is from an edition of three plus two artist’s proofs. This work is accompanied by a certificate of authenticity.

Estimate
£20,000 - 30,000 

Sold for £58,850

Contemporary Art Evening Sale

13 October 2010
London