Artwork: Ugarit Gate
Artist: Mustafa Ali
Location: Joan Fuster avenue/ Cinturón Verde (Green belt)
Date: 2001
Ugarit Gate is a piece of work that brings together the impact of the idea as a mythological representation and cultural potential with the strength of sculpture as an element of plastic beauty. This monument, 5.5 metres high, was installed at one of the entrances to Aldaia.
It is constituted as a gate of black “Marquino” marble and bronze, representing a mythical animal with a double face: a human being on one side and an animal on the other. This work of art was installed as a symbol of the exchange of culture and civilisation, as well as the long history linking Spain and Syria from the ancient Phoenicians to the time of the Umayyad Arabs. It was built on a solid base with a smooth surface on the front and a rough surface on the back and sides.
The connection with the mythological creature appears between the solid structure on which it stands upright and the flexible and slender body of the creature that possesses it. The creature seems alert as if it wants to tell someone some news or convey some message.
The artist, by playing with the rough surface and the diverse relief, allows the light to make changing interpretations, thus ensuring the sculpture’s presence in the space.