Tracey Emin and Louise Bourgeois: A Conversation on Collaboration and Creation

In a 2010 interview, Tracey Emin discusses her collaborative series with Louise Bourgeois, 'Do not Abandon me', which was first shown at Carolina Nitsch gallery in New York (Sept 9–Nov 13, 2010) and later at Hauser & Wirth in London (Feb 18–Mar 12, 2011). Over two years, Emin added texts, drawings, and gouache to sixteen of Bourgeois's profile body gouaches; the series was also produced as an edition of eighteen canvases. Emin describes her approach as working 'as discreetly as possible' with 'delicacy and lightness'. Bourgeois signed each image with her initials embroidered in red thread. The title 'Do not Abandon Me' was chosen after completion. Emin reveals that Bourgeois encouraged her to take her time. The conversation delves into themes of crucifixion, birth, and death, with Emin rejecting interpretations of the female figure as a child or as being inside a pregnant womb, insisting the figure is a woman placed 'in the world' as a landscape. Emin recounts personal experiences of rape, abortion, and endometriosis that influenced the work. She also mentions plans to curate a Bourgeois exhibition at the Brooklyn Museum the following year. The interview was conducted by Frédérique Joseph-Lowery on October 25, 2010.