Sunset Mall has a new giant sculpture of a lioness, titled Mbaye the lioness, made of stainless steel at its entrance in Dubai’s Jumeirah district.
Right now, only the head of the sculpture is visible. But once it is completed it will weigh 120 tonnes and reach 13 metres in height. It was designed and made in Dubai after a seven-year design and manufacturing process.
The sculpture’s name is given after Captain Mbaye Diagne, a Senegalese UN peacekeeping soldier who was stationed in Rwanda during the country’s genocide in 1994. While also completing UN missions, Diagne struck out on his own to save members of the Tutsi ethnic minority.
He often hid people in his car, ferrying them to safety, and also shielded members of the Hutu majority. Flouting the UN’s rules of engagement at times, his independent actions are said to have saved as many as 1,000 lives.
At the age of 36, he was killed by a mortar shell launched by the Rwandan Patriotic Front, while stopped at an army checkpoint. It was only 12 days before he was due to return to Senegal.
“We are delighted and honored to unveil the ongoing sculpting of Mbaye the Lioness – a work of art that epitomizes the love and care that Captain Mbaye Diagne showed to thousands of innocent people that were caught up in the tribal war,” says Lawton Loraine, the owner of Inox Arabia and creator of the project.
“The objective of this unique art showcase is to inspire people not only in the UAE but all over the world to care for others regardless of where they come from.”
The sculpture was made in stainless steel from Inox Arabia, which operates out of Al Quoz, and its green eyes were made in jade from Brazil. Its feet, which currently sit inside the mall, were carved in marble imported from Carrara in Italy.
The sculpture will also incorporate 210 different native flowers from all over the world, in a symbol of celebration of diversity. Its finished parts will be on view for 60 days at Sunset Mall, near Kite Beach.
The UAE and Rwanda have strong relations, with the UAE sending medical aid and supplies on three occasions to the landlocked African country during the Covid-19 crisis.