Tracey Emin Defends New Hirst Paintings

　　LONDON—Damien Hirst has been receiving a vicious verbal thrashing from British critics for his new paintings at the Wallace Collection, but it turns out that he has at least one ardent supporter: artist Tracey Emin.

　　Emin tells the Wall Street Journal, “I know what it’s like to be really slapped off by critics. Even when you’re tough, it gets to you. But he’s being experimental, and that’s brave.” She also relays that she saw Hirst out at a restaurant, where he appeared to be in good spirits. “I heard him laughing later at his table, so I think he’s fine,” she said.

　　Emin has a history of angering critics. Her Turner Prize submission in 1999, which featured My Bed, an installation that included vodka bottles, pill packets, and discarded condoms surrounding an unmade bed, provoked particular wrath from some quarters.

　　In addition, her turn at the 2007 Venice Biennale was also widely panned. Richard Dorment, an art critic for the Telegraph, concluded his review, “For the 22 years I've been reviewing this Biennale, I've never seen such thin material at the British pavilion.”

　　On the other hand, Emin's buyers — including super-collector Charles Saatchi — have been strong supporters for many years. ARTINFO reported that the specially commissioned neon sculptures she was offering for sale at Frieze were selling.

　　Critics and supporters will have another chance to consider Emin’s art on November 5, when a solo exhibition of her work opens at New York’s Lehmann Maupin. Its title is “Only God Knows I’m Good.”

（来源：Artinfo，点击参看译文）

【编辑：张明湖】