Wallinger horse sculpture unveiled on the Mall

A life-size statue of a white racehorse has been unveiled on the Mall.

The sculpture, by artist Mark Wallinger, is made of marble and resin and stands outside the British Council’s headquarters in central London which will be its home for two years before it is taken abroad to be displayed.

The work is a copy of a larger design, intended to be around 50 metres tall, that Wallinger wants to build at Ebbsfleet in Kent that has become known as The Angel of the South.

Andrea Rose, the director of visual arts at the British Council, said: “A white horse in the centre of London is a wonderful sight. It sparks associations - ancient and modern; war and peace; rural and urban; sport and pleasure. I hope it puts a spring in the step of all who pass it on the Mall.”

Wallinger’s planned giant horse is expected to dominate the north Kent landscape and be seen by up to 60 million people each year in its position overlooking the busy A2.

It was named as the winning design following a competition launched by the Ebbsfleet Landmark Project’s founding patrons, Eurostar, Land Securities and London & Continental Railways.

They plan to regenerate the area around Ebbsfleet International railway station with up to 10,000 new homes and community facilities across a 400-acre site, and hope the art work will act as a symbol for the project.