Fresh from the artist’s studio, we are pleased to offer an online release of new works by Ara Dolatian. This small suite of golden-clad figures speaks to the ambiguous deities of Mesopotemian myths, artefacts and legends. It is a continuation of the artist’s ongoing examination of the cultural ecologies surrounding the histories of present, lost and stolen Mesopotamian artefacts. Rather than replicating this fractured past, the artist draws inspiration from it to create new, fictionalised deities with eccentric forms inspired by the past, from the lens of the present day impetus to investigate what has been lost, what remains and what can be discovered. These works, as their titles suggest, build a poetic relationship between the present and the millennia-old Mesopotamian culture of the Middle-East.

Ara Dolatian was born in Baghdad, Iraq, and now lives and works in Melbourne, Australia. His sculptural practice is intimately bound to his Iraqi heritage and its ancient Mesopotamian history. Dolatian holds a Bachelor of Fine Art (sculpture) from RMIT and a Master of Social Science Environment and Planning. He has exhibited extensively both nationally and internationally. Among a growing list of accolades, in 2023 Dolatian was a finalist in the Darebin Art Prize and Omnia Art Prize, and in 2022 was a finalist in the Woollahra Small Sculpture Prize. In 2021 he was awarded the Incinerator Art Award, as well as receiving a residency as a part of Craft Victoria’s Makers in Residence. In 2023 he was recognised as an important presence in contemporary art in the state of Victoria with his inclusion in Melbourne Now at the National Gallery of Victoria, as well as Craft Victoria’s major exhibition for Melbourne Design Week.