A giant fresco painted by street artist Mahn Kloix in tribute to the rescuers of the SOS Méditerranée ambulance ship has been displayed since Friday in Marseille, on the emblematic “Zidane wall” overlooking the sea.
On the 100 m2 facade along the cornice, a rescuer scans the sea using binoculars, thus succeeding “Zizou”, the legend of French football, whose name has remained for the Marseillais attached to this wall, even if its poster, put up in 1998 by a sports equipment manufacturer, has disappeared for 20 years.
“We replace one national hero with another”explained to AFP Mahn Kloix, a committed Marseille artist who has signed numerous frescoes to illustrate the courage of “oppressed minorities and agents of change”.
“This woman is an employee of SOS Méditerranée taken from a photo from their archives”explains Mahn Kloix: “It really looks like it’s looking out to sea, so there’s a very strong meaning to this location, and then Marseille is a welcoming land that has always been focused on the Mediterranean.”
“The Mahn fresco evokes the very basis of our mission. Our rescuers spend much more time scanning the horizon for boats in distress than saving time”adds Sophie Beau, general director of SOS Méditerranée, who also sees it as a broader symbol.
“For me, this image also represents the need for civil society to keep its eyes out to sea, to keep watch at sea because States are failing”she adds.
Katia Rode, a 60-year-old passerby, fell under the spell of this black and white work: “I think the drawing is very beautiful! Let's remember to see a little further than the end of our nose. That's not bad!”she reacted to AFP.
Since its first mission at sea in 2016, SOS Méditerranée explains that it has rescued nearly 41,000 men, women and children, mainly in the central Mediterranean, the most dangerous migratory route in the world.
In 2023, 3,155 migrants died or went missing after trying to cross the Mediterranean to reach Europe, according to the latest figures from the International Organization for Migration (IOM). Since January, 1,643 migrants have died or gone missing there, according to the same source.
