Rachel Reeves was accused of being ‘ashamed to embrace British history and tradition’ after the full list of artworks she has removed from No 11 was obtained by The Mail on Sunday.
Portraits of Sir Isaac Newton and former prime ministers including William Pitt and Henry Pelham have been replaced by baffling abstract paintings depicting ‘Covid anxiety’ and social distancing.
The Chancellor has removed 31 works of art either featuring men or by male artists in order to celebrate the ‘amazing women who have gone before us’.
This newspaper revealed last week that Sir Keir Starmer had removed 69 artworks from No 10 – including portraits of Elizabeth I, and William Shakespeare.
He also removed a portrait of Margaret Thatcher from his Downing Street study, claiming that he does not like ‘images and pictures of people staring down at me’.
Ms Reeves has followed suit by ‘deinstalling’ the portrait of former chancellor and prime minister Benjamin Disraeli, as well as King James I and II.
And while Sir Keir swapped his historic paintings for contemporary works including a depiction of a reggae festival and others inspired by Nigerian and Ghanaian culture, the Chancellor opted for art commemorating the Covid lockdowns.
Portraits of Sir Isaac Newton and former prime ministers including William Pitt and Henry Pelham have been replaced by baffling abstract paintings depicting ‘Covid anxiety’ and social distancing. Pictured: William Pitt by Thomas Gainsborough
The pieces, created by Donna Coleman, include a human head formed by a red squiggle called Covid Anxiety 5 (Mask Disorder)
They also include a charcoal swirl fronted by a black square entitled Misunderstood
The pieces, created by Donna Coleman, include a human head formed by a red squiggle called Covid Anxiety 5 (Mask Disorder) and a charcoal swirl fronted by a black square entitled Misunderstood.
No 11’s new collection also includes a statue by Gillian Wearing which depicts suffragist Millicent Fawcett and a conceptual imagining of Tier 3 lockdown by Lisa Fielding-Smith.
Alex Burghart, Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and a former history don at King’s College, London, said: ‘Rachel Reeves’ choice of trade union Trots and red mist over the likes of Benjamin Disraeli, William Pitt and Isaac Newton speaks volumes about this Labour Government, and how they are ashamed to embrace British history and tradition.’
