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Tracey Emin to Found Art School and Museum in Hometown Margate

artist · 2026-04-27

Tracey Emin, a renowned British artist and a member of the Young British Artists, is set to launch TKE Studios, an art school and museum in Margate, Kent. This institution will be housed in a repurposed seaside station and mortuary, offering 30 affordable studios for students, who will be required to showcase their work regularly. Emin envisions a strict atmosphere, prohibiting subletting, smoking, and loud music. Additionally, a residency initiative is designed to enhance Margate's creative economy. Having moved to Margate during her childhood, Emin, a Turner Prize finalist in 1999 and the UK's representative at the 2007 Venice Biennale, has also announced plans for a museum-archive containing 30,000 photographs and 2,500 works on paper following her battle with cancer.

Key facts

  • Tracey Emin is founding TKE Studios art school and a museum in Margate, Kent.
  • The school will occupy a former seaside station and mortuary.
  • 30 affordable studios will be built for students.
  • The mortuary will be converted into a museum for Emin's art collection.
  • Emin announced the plan after battling cancer and undergoing a hysterectomy.
  • She previously announced in September a plan to turn her studio into a museum-archive.
  • Margate's Turner Contemporary opened in 2011 and hosted the Turner Prize in 2019.
  • Emin was a Turner Prize finalist in 1999 and represented Britain at the 52nd Venice Biennale in 2007.

Entities

Artists

  • Tracey Emin
  • Damien Hirst
  • Edward Munch
  • Egon Schiele
  • Jonathan Jones
  • Charles Saatchi

Institutions

  • TKE Studios
  • Turner Contemporary
  • Turner Prize
  • Momart
  • Laurence King Publishing
  • St. Pancras station
  • 52nd Venice Biennale

Locations

  • Margate
  • Kent
  • England
  • Venice
  • Italy

Sources