The mural portrays the Notre Dame de la Garde basilica, a major landmark in Marseille, being painted by a djellaba wearing artist. Novopress felt that the Virgin Mother on belfry was being transformed by the artist in the painting into a mosque and decided to check further.
the basilica (Wikipedia)
the basilica in the mural vs the original (Novopress)
the painted basilica in the mural (Novopress)The canvas (10 by 2 meters) has been displayed in the hotel lobby since Feb 3, 2005, commissioned by the "Le Blé de l'Espérance – Maguy Roubaud" organization in order to cheer up the ill children. It was drawn by Valérie Ciccarelli and two other artists and is intended to portray life in Marseille in a humorous manner. The artist had wanted to denounce colonization and the Islamization in the city.
Valérie Ciccarelli was surprised to hear of the various interpretations offered for her work. She explained that she was asked to make a mural of Marseille and that at that time many things were going on, including a mosque project, and that explains the painter in a djellaba replacing the belfry with a minaret. Ciccarelli adores the cosmopolitan side of Marseille but says she had no intention of putting in political connotations.
Source: Novopress (French)
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