Qatar unveils Hirst’s ‘Miraculous Journey’

DOHA - Agence France-Presse

This photo shows the last statue in a series of sculptures titled ‘The Miraculous Journey’ by Damien Hirst.

Qatar unveiled 14 massive bronze sculptures by British artist Damien Hirst charting the gestation of a human being from conception to birth.

The “Miraculous Journey” statues were uncovered outside the Sidra Medical and Research Centre, still under construction on the outskirts of Doha. They were put back under wraps until January 14 to “protect them while work is ongoing” in the area, the Qatar Museums Authority explained.

The project is an initiative by Sheikha Al-Mayassa bint Hamad Al-Thani, the emir’s sister who heads the museums authority.

The installation consists of 14 figures which took three years to create, ranging between 4.8 metres and 10.7 metres in height and weighing between nine and 28 tonnes each. They begin with the fertilisation of an egg and end with a fully-formed baby.