Tracey Emin's 1996 film How It Feels revisited amid US abortion rights reversal

Lauren Elkin reflects on Tracey Emin's 1996 film How It Feels following the US Supreme Court's overturning of Roe v. Wade. In the film, Emin recounts a 1990 botched abortion in the UK, where a doctor refused to sign necessary papers, citing his beliefs. Emin, then a struggling artist years before her Turner Prize nomination and representing Britain at the Venice Biennale, describes the emotional conflict of the procedure. The film, set outside a church on Euston Road, captures her raw narrative about guilt and creative realization. Emin's work, including pieces like Homage to Edvard Munch and All My Dead Children and The Mother (2022) in Oslo, explores maternity and loss. The article contrasts sentimental pro-life rhetoric with Emin's nuanced portrayal of abortion's lasting impact, linking it to her artistic evolution. Clarence Thomas's concurring opinion targeting birth control is noted, alongside broader debates on reproductive rights.