Elia has made it her work to look deeply into the past to evoke an ancient kingdom, enunciating how its people have been dispersed across modern maps. In ancient times, Assyria was a major power in the Middle East with a kingdom that stretched across parts of Northern Iraq, Turkey, Syria, and Iran. After years of persecution and displacement beginning in the 19th century and continuing into the early 2000s, Assyrian people today are distributed across the globe. Elia’s art becomes a potent concentration of ideas and memories by exploring the Assyrian diasporic identity, as well as how history is preserved and how culture evolves. Take, for example, her bodybuilder series, wherein she envisions “the grandchildren” of ancient Assyrian deities as new goddesses. Clad in high heels with biceps bulging, forged in Mexican tiles and acrylic paint representing how Assyrians have made their homes in new places, they are images of strength and perseverance.