Artists I Admire - Tracey Emin

With the new year well underway, now is the time I love to look ahead and plan for the things I would like to achieve. Although work is still busy, the Christmas madness has passed and I can take a breath, relax a little and allow my mind to wander and daydream. It's a good time to look back through my notes and tear sheets and absorb myself in the things that influence and inspire me.

An artist whose work I admire is Tracey Emin. She was becoming a big name on the British art scene as I was nearing the end of my time at art college, so she's been a part of the artistic landscape for the majority of my adult years, but the moment I really fell under her spell came when I visited her entry in the Turner Prize. This was when one of her most famous works was on show - 'My Bed' - and I was completely won over by the intimacy and the honesty of the work; the fact that her life and her art were indivisible, being so closely entwined, and I found her dedication truly inspirational. She felt so real. There was no posturing, just a truth that was unflinching and raw... so raw that at times it could feel uncomfortable. Yet for all the pain and hurt that was evident, there was also a warmth and comfort with some of the materials and methods she chose to work in such as collected scraps of fabric, blankets, hand embroidery and applique. Timeless methods of expression.

Tracey Emin in her studio

She has been a huge inspiration to me. I'm a completely different kind of person with my own story to tell but like Tracey I also seek to express who I am through the work that I do and I think that the people we like and admire become a part of who we are and how we frame ourselves.

Amanda xxx