Michael Rakowitz's new work unveiled in London's Trafalgar Square

LONDON, March 28 (Xinhua) -- Michael Rakowitz's new work The Invisible Enemy Should Not Exist was unveiled on the Fourth Plinth in London's Trafalgar Square on Wednesday by London Mayor Sadiq Khan.

Invisible Enemy Should Not Exist, a project Rakowitz started in 2006, attempts to recreate more than 7,000 objects looted from the Iraq Museum in 2003 or destroyed at archaeological sites across the country in the aftermath of the war.

For the Fourth Plinth, Rakowitz has recreated the Lamassu, a winged bull and protective deity that stood at the entrance to Nergal Gate of Nineveh (near modern day Mosul) from 700 BC until it was destroyed by the Islamic State group in 2015. It will be the 12th work to appear on the Fourth Plinth since the commissioning program began in 1998, and will be on the plinth until March 2020.

The reconstructions in The Invisible Enemy are made from recycled food packaging, similar to the reliefs at the base of Nelson's Column being made from canons salvaged from the wreck of HMS Royal George. The Lamassu is made of 10,500 empty Iraqi date syrup cans, representative of a once-renowned industry decimated by the Iraq wars.

Rakowitz said: "This work is unveiled in Trafalgar Square at a time when we are witnessing a massive migration of people fleeing Iraq and Syria. I see this work as a ghost of the original, and as a placeholder for those human lives that cannot be reconstructed, that are still searching for sanctuary."

Sadiq Khan said:"I am delighted to unveil this new work by Michael Rakowitz, the next sculpture to be featured on the Fourth Plinth -- the world's most famous public art platform. Michael's work shows the power of art to bring to life politics, cultures and personal stories from around the world and across generations."

To coincide with the unveiling, Rakowitz is creating a limited-edition artwork using date syrup tins sourced from Karbala in Iraq. Each is accompanied by a book of date syrup recipes, including contributions from chef Claudia Roden, Middle Eastern restaurant Honey & Co., and the artist's mother, Yvonne Rakowitz.

Michael Rakowitz was born in New York in 1973 and lives and works in Chicago, where he is a professor at Northwestern University. His first museum survey Backstroke of the West was at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago in 2017/18. Rakowitz's work explores global issues and invites others into the conversations fostered by his public projects, installations and events. Enditem