The rat is the new muse for artists in Marseille

Far from the reality of Ratatouille, it's no secret that Parisians have an aversion to rats. But the same can't be said for the people of Marseille, where the rodent is gaining unparalleled popularity. In fact, in the heart of the Phocean city, many artists and designers are inspired by it to create. Represented through stencils on the city's walls, featured on t-shirts, bucket hats, and even in statues, the rat is everywhere. "In Marseille, the rats come out in a Mediterranean way: they put their chairs outside and start chatting... They make themselves seen in Marseille. They don’t hide too much," jokes Rhazi, the owner of Brick City, who launched a dedicated collection called Racoste. "It's common in all big cities, we agree. And it's proportional to the number of inhabitants, we agree on that too. But in Marseille, they are friendlier," he assures.

A little further, another artist (Rémy Lieveloo) creates t-shirts in his studio, decorated with a giant airbrushed rat crossed by the name Marseille. The painter says he had "this idea for all the tourists who come in the summer and have the image of Marseille that the city wants to project to them". But he adds, "the reality is that the city is what it is, it won't change. And rats are part of the Marseille landscape". But the homage to the rodent doesn’t stop there: it is also featured on flip-flops in the colors of Olympique de Marseille, or in a series of sculptures called Les Monstres, where we find Le Rat Marseillais, a unique gypsum piece, spray-painted and made in tribute to the city. According to municipal estimates, Marseille is home to about 1.5 million rats, or 1.5 to 1.7 rats per inhabitant. While the people of Marseille, with their unmatched good humor, have embraced the vermin with humor and philosophy, the rodent problem remains considerable in France. In July 2022, the National Academy of Medicine warned against the "overpopulation of sewer rats in major cities like Paris and Marseille", reminding that it "is a real danger to public health."