The Art Newspaper

14 Years of Tory Rule… by Mark Wallinger @mark_wallinger_mark We asked the Turner Prize-winning artist to create a work reflecting on the impact of 14 years of Tory rule on the arts, which we present here. To accompany the piece, he submitted a statement. It says: “The charge sheet for the Tories is lengthy: five hapless and useless leaders, austerity as ideology, NHS in crisis, food banks, hostile environment policy, Brexit, xenophobia, corruption, mendacity and incompetence during the pandemic, cronyism, partygate, water companies dumping sewage, rowing back on climate change commitments, the housing crisis, Grenfell victims still waiting for justice, cost of living crisis, maligning asylum seekers, Rwanda scheme, contempt for human rights, the post office scandal and Liz Truss, for heaven’s sake. As far as the arts community is concerned: the loss of the arts as a central part of the school curriculum, and the resultant inequality of opportunity for state educated students. The woeful underfunding of the arts (with art schools and museums struggling), the knock-on effects of Brexit, the continual sniping and threats to the BBC, the politicisation of public funding in the attempts to break down the arm’s length principle, the merry-go round of different culture secretaries.” – Mark Wallinger Tap the link in our bio for our analysis of the UK arts industry after a decade and a half of the Conservative Party in power