Plumpton artist takes blow torch to painting in ‘symbolic protest’ at Eton College homes plan

A Plumpton artist whose work commands four-figure prices has taken a blow torch to his own landscape painting in protest at proposals for a new 3,000-home development in East Chiltington.

Grant Dejonge said it was his way of making his voice heard and highlighting the ‘potential destruction’ of the countryside area and the habitat and wildlife it supports.

Once an urban artist living in Brighton, Grant’s move to Plumpton 15 years ago inspired him to start painting the beautiful landscape around his home.

The now-burned painting depicted a field of sunflowers in nearby East Chiltington, where Eton College is hoping to build a new development on land it owns.

With the damaged artwork, after taking a blow torch to the centre

From the blighted painting, Grant plans to create a new, darker artwork which will show the sunflower field’s beauty ‘ravaged by greed’ – to illustrate that once the countryside is buried under an urban sprawl, it will be lost forever.

Grant will be giving the new artwork to campaign group Don’t Urbanise the Downs, which was set up in March this year to fight the new town proposals – and which now has over 2,800 supporters.

The work will be auctioned to raise funds for the group.

Grant said: “I think Eton’s plans are driven purely by greed – we do not need a new town to meet our district housing targets and we certainly shouldn’t be putting one here in what is one of the few remaining areas of unspoilt countryside and active farmland in Sussex – right next to the South Downs National Park.