A few more details and it will be finished. The fresco in tribute to the former footballer Emiliano Sala is taking shape day by day on one of the facades of the Moulin Boisseau sports complex in Carquefou. Ten meters long and almost five meters high, it represents the portrait of the former FC Nantes striker, who disappeared on January 21, 2019 during a plane crash.
Perched on his scaffolding, the painter Gabriel Griffa, straight from Argentina, adds the final details to the fresco. A black and white portrait, adorned with a green and yellow background, in the colors of the Canaries of Nantes.
– Leonie Cornet
Arriving in France on Sunday April 3, 2022 with his wife, Gabriel Griffa is known for his monumental portraits in Argentina. He is the author of a fresco representing Emiliano Sala in Progreso, in the northeast of the country, where he played for a long time.
“For me, it’s really a special feeling to paint Emiliano, says the artist. I believe that Emiliano’s relatives chose this place because it is here, in Carquefou, that he lived… And what better than a football field to pay homage to him?
A stone’s throw from the football pitches
It is in the heart of the Moulin Boisseau sports complex in Carquefou that the face of Emiliano Sala takes shape on the facade. This Monday, Milo, Nathan, Pierre, Raphaël and other children make a few passes on the football field.
“It’s very similar, apart from the teeth which are a little badly done I think”, says Nathan, 11 years old. For Enzo, 11 years old, “He was the best in the team. He was good at dribbling, and when it was necessary to pass, he was there.”
Mathis Péquin trains these young people from the Carquefou football club. He passes by the fresco every day and is happy to see it evolve. “Every day we are curious to see the novelties that will be brought to the painting” he admits.
The fresco will soon be finished but we will have to wait a little longer before the official inauguration, on April 27, 2022.