For too long, Tracey Emin’s work has been associated with shock value and loud emotions. Sex and Solitude, the exhibition opening on March 16 at Palazzo Strozzi, proves otherwise, guiding visitors through a journey of both recent and past works. Above all, it highlights the communicative power of one of the most important contemporary artists—one who has always managed to narrate her life experiences, both good and bad, through her art.

«Art has always taken care of me,» Emin stated during the press conference, reflecting on a career spanning over thirty years that has now led her to Palazzo Strozzi. From neon lights to performance, painting, sculpture, and embroidery, the British artist—together with curator Arturo Galansino—presents an exhibition that explores pain, loss, and the joy of simply being alive.

Sex and Solitude revolves around two highly relevant themes: sexuality—an underlying thread in much of Emin’s work—and solitude, which has now become a crucial component of her creative process.

Works such as Those Who Suffer LOVE (2009), Thriving on Solitude (2020), and You Should Have Saved Me (2023) clearly express the emotional rollercoaster that has shaped Emin into the artist she is today—self-aware, honest, and, above all, human. A human being with guilt, limitations, and a deep need to support the next generation of creatives, as she does in Margate, her hometown.

Accompanying the exhibition are two works that specifically reflect her commitment to public art: the neon sign Sex and Solitude (2025) on the façade of Palazzo Strozzi and the monumental bronze sculpture I Followed You To The End (2024), installed overnight in the courtyard of the Strozzi building. These works mark a significant moment in the contemporary Italian art scene, which—now more than ever—needs to give voice to an artist who not only shares her story so openly but also extends a hand to the artists of the future.