Michael Rakowitz

This summer, a large sculpture by the Iraqi-American artist Michael Rakowitz will stand outside Stavanger Cathedral. The sculpture is a recreation of a guardian figure from an ancient Assyrian temple. The temple has been subject to looting and destruction since the 1850s, when British archaeologists first began removing parts of its artworks to send them to the West. Several waves of colonial plundering followed before ISIS destroyed the remaining structures in 2015.

Stavanger Cathedral has shaped the city’s landscape since the 12th century. As we this year celebrate the anniversary of both the church and the city, wars continue to rage in various parts of the world. In such times, the significance of cultural heritage becomes even more pronounced.

We have therefore invited Michael Rakowitz (b. 1973) to display his work The invisible enemy should not exist (Lamassu of Nineveh) (2018) outside the cathedral. The sculpture represents a lamassu—a protective deity with the head of a human, the body of a bull, and the wings of a bird. Once found in the ancient city of Nineveh, the new version was installed on The Fourth Plinth in London’s Trafalgar Square in 2018, facing Iraq, its back turned to Paliment. The nearly three-thousand-year-old guardian figure is made from the packaging of empty tin cans that once contained Iraqi date syrup. The colourful surface recalls the original hues of the sculpture, while the choice of material serves as a commentary on the devastating effects that war and imperialism has had on the once legendary Iraqi date industry.

The connection between the guardian figure and the church will be explored in an opening event on May 23 in Stavanger Cathedral.

Since 2007, Iraqi-American artist Michael Rakowitz (b. 1973) has worked on reappearing the cultural artifacts lost or destroyed in the aftermath of the US-led invasion of Iraq. Rakowitz highlights the many layered effects of centuries of imperialism and the ways the destruction of art and culture parallel the destruction of life.

On September 27, a major exhibition of Michael Rakowitz's works will open at Stavanger Art Museum.