Hans Haacke: Gift Horse

Hans Haacke’s Gift Horse is currently on the Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Square.

In place of the statue of William IV astride a horse – as was originally planned for the empty plinth – Haacke proposed a skeleton of a strutting horse. Tied to its front leg is an electronic ribbon which displays live data from the London Stock Exchange, completing the link between power, money and history. The piece attempts to make a number of hidden substructures visible – tied up with a bow as a gift to all.

Gift Horse was commissioned by the Mayor of London as part of the Fourth Plinth Commissioning Programme and is the tenth sculpture to be unveiled on Trafalgar Square’s Fourth Plinth.