Tracey Emin’s Monumental Bronzes Transform Paris’s Parvis
Three large scale sculptures by the celebrated artist chart a profound journey of the female form, from surrender to resilience, installed across one of Paris's most emblematic public spaces.
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Three monumental bronze sculptures by Tracey Emin now grace the expansive Parvis des Droits de l’Homme in Paris, a presentation of profound emotional resonance orchestrated by White Cube in collaboration with Art Basel Paris and the Cité de l’architecture et du patrimoine. The works unfold across the plaza’s luminous expanse, their burnished surfaces catching the shifting light of the French capital in a meditation on bodily transformation and the evolution of human resilience.
The three pieces trace a contemplative arc through the female form’s journey. ‘I lay here for you’, created in 2018, establishes the initial posture of kneeling vulnerability, a gesture of profound submission and surrender. This monumental bronze figure grounds itself upon the plaza, anchoring the viewer’s gaze with its raw emotional honesty. Moving through the installation, ‘I Followed You to the End’, a recent 2024 work, advances the narrative through continued physical transformation. The final sculpture, ‘I Will Not Be Alone’ from 2025, completes the trilogy by positioning the figure in a seated pose, one that speaks eloquently of consolidation and restored agency.
A Landscape of Emotional Architecture
Installed together, these three bronzes create a spatial dialogue that invites contemplation of vulnerability, companionship and the passage from surrender towards an integrated, resilient selfhood. The Parvis des Droits de l’Homme, a ceremonial plaza steeped in historical significance, becomes transformed into a gallery without walls, where art and architecture engage in a sophisticated conversation about the human condition.
The monumental scale of these works amplifies their emotional intensity. Bronze, that most noble of sculptural materials, glows with warmth and presence in the Parisian light, while the public setting ensures that this profoundly intimate exploration of transformation reaches beyond the confines of institutional walls to touch the city itself.
Expanding Vision
Complementing this public presentation, White Cube Paris will inaugurate an exhibition of Tracey Emin’s sculptures and new paintings on 20 October 2026, offering further insight into the artist’s evolving practice. Together, these presentations cement Paris as a crucial destination for encountering work of uncompromising emotional depth and sculptural refinement.
The Parvis installation remains on view until 1 November 2026, inviting visitors to experience how three bronze figures can chart so eloquently the contours of human transformation, resilience and the redemptive power of presence.
Imagery courtesy of White Cube (@whitecube).
