The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Acrylic on unstretched canvas. 4 Panels, 9ft by 5ft each. November 1984. Collection: MIMA

Each panel of this work makes a satirical comment on the political landscape of the early 1980s. The four faces represent entwined forces of the free market, power and state. The first figure is a middle-class Tory voter ticking a ballot box; the second figure is a policeman employed to beat up striking miners; the third figure is an American army officer charged with installing nuclear weapons; the final figure is Ronald Reagan, the US president at that time, in charge of the nuclear button. The figures refer to the Biblical four horsemen of the apocalypse symbolizing conquest, war, famine and death. This work is an example of Piper’s engagement in the fight for racial and economic justice.