Port of Lisbon Celebrates 136 Years with a Gift of Vhils' Artwork to the City

Yesterday, the Port of Lisbon marked its 136th anniversary with the presentation of two works that pay tribute to the refugees of World War II who, from the mid-1940s, found in the Portuguese capital the only European port open to receive them.
The ceremony was attended by the President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, the Mayor of Lisbon, Carlos Moedas, the Secretary of State for the Sea, José Maria Costa, the French Ambassador to Portugal, Hélène Farnaud-Defromont, and the President of the Board of Directors of the Port of Lisbon, Carlos Correia, among other personalities.
The first work to be revealed was created by Vhils, inspired by a photograph of Roger Kahan, a French Jewish photographer and refugee who found the last dock in Lisbon as an escape from the war. Vhils' art recreated the photograph of another Jewish refugee next to a mailbox at the Rocha Conde de Óbidos Maritime Terminal before embarking for the other side of the Atlantic. Vhils' artwork is located next to the same mailbox, still existing today.
The same photo, taken by Roger Kahan, was initially featured in a report by journalist Ferreira Fernandes and also inspired him to write the book 'O Cais da Europa, Roger Kahan, refugiado, fotógrafo – Lisboa, 1940' (The Dock of Europe, Roger Kahan, refugee, photographer – Lisbon, 1940). The book was launched yesterday at the Rocha Conde de Óbidos Maritime Terminal, as part of the notebooks of the Archive of the Port of Lisbon.
For the President of the Port of Lisbon, Carlos Correia, "this dual tribute to Roger Kahan, on the anniversary of the Port of Lisbon, has a very important meaning. On the one hand, it recalls the decisive role of this port in the history of the country and the world, namely the time when it was the only European dock open to the escape of refugees from World War II. On the other hand, the 136th-anniversary milestone is another step in the Port's strategy of proximity to the City, by offering Lisbon, its citizens, and visitors a monument by one of the most important contemporary urban artists. Finally, the launch of Ferreira Fernandes' book reinforces the knowledge of the vital role that the Port of Lisbon has always played."
After the unveiling of Vhils' artwork, the ceremony continued in the hall of the Rocha Conde de Óbidos Maritime Terminal, where the book by Ferreira Fernandes was presented in the presence of Kahan's daughter-in-law.

In June of last year, Ferreira Fernandes wrote a report on Roger Kahan in Mensagem de Lisboa, recalling that "the passage through Lisbon in 1940 of this important cinema photographer in Paris was documented in moving photographs. Lisbon was the pivot of a story that was to continue around the world." Yesterday, this story had another chapter with the inauguration of urban artwork and the launch of a book by Ferreira Fernandes. Both works were supported by the Port of Lisbon and curated by Mensagem de Lisboa."

01/11/2023