Tracey Emin, Britain’s greatest female artist: ‘Against death, illness or pain, art wins’

Raped at 13, written off by critics, in remission from cancer – Tracey Emin is art’s great survivor, and her new major Tate retrospective, set to be one of the year’s blockbuster shows, is the ultimate accolade. She talks to Geordie Greig about painting, pain and showing Madonna around Margate