Mark Wallinger New Arts Cuts Protest Painting

As promised, Turner Prize-winning artist Mark Wallinger produced a new work to highlight  proposed government cuts in the arts. The work entitled ‘Reckless’ takes Turner's 1839 painting ‘The Fighting Temeraire’ showing "25% cut" out of the canvas in a Banksy style composite. A new work from artists supporting the cause will be released every week until cuts are announced on 20 October. Damien Hirst and Tracey Emin are among the Save the Arts backers. Wallinger, who won the Turner Prize in 2007, is famous for his 1999 fourth plinth commission Ecco Homo and the giant white horse set to go up in Kent. He stated, that cutting out an obsolete ship from the painting rendered it "wreckless", while he described the proposed cuts as "reckless".The artwork also carries the caption "if 25% were slashed from arts funding the loss would be immeasurable." The petition, which includes the signatures of Wallinger, David Hockney and the Chapman Brothers, will be sent to Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt in the near future.

Sign the petition: savethearts.org.uk