MARSEILLE, France (AP) — The lighthouse appeared overnight. Painted on a wall tucked away in a quiet Marseille street, its beam aligned perfectly with the real-life shadow of a metal post on the pavement. At its center, stenciled in crisp white, are the words: “I want to be what you saw in me.”
Banksy had struck again.
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A woman walks past an artwork by street artist Banksy, Friday, May 30, 2025 in Marseille, southern France. (AP Photo/Bishr Eltoni)
A man makes a selfie by an artwork by street artist Banksy, Friday, May 30, 2025 in Marseille, southern France. (AP Photo/Bishr Eltoni)
A man rides his scooter by an artwork by street artist Banksy, Friday, May 30, 2025 in Marseille, southern France. (AP Photo/Bishr Eltoni)
A man poses by an artwork by street artist Banksy, Friday, May 30, 2025 in Marseille, southern France. (AP Photo/Bishr Eltoni)
A man poses by an artwork by street artist Banksy, Friday, May 30, 2025 in Marseille, southern France. (AP Photo/Bishr Eltoni)
A man poses by an artwork by street artist Banksy, Friday, May 30, 2025 in Marseille, southern France. (AP Photo/Bishr Eltoni)
On Friday, the elusive British street artist confirmed the work by posting two images on his official Instagram account — without caption or coordinates. Fans quickly identified the location as 1 Rue Félix Frégier, in the Catalans district of Marseille’s 7th arrondissement, near the sea.
Since then, crowds have gathered at the site. Tourists snap photos. Children point. Locals who usually walk past the building stop to take a closer look.
There is no official explanation for the phrase. But its emotional pull is unmistakable — a quiet plea for recognition, love or redemption. Some speculate it references a country ballad by Lonestar. Others call it a love letter. Or a lament. Or both.
The image is deceptively simple: a lone lighthouse, dark and weathered, casting a stark white beam. But what gives it power is the way it plays with light — the real and the painted, the seen and the imagined. The post in front of the wall becomes part of the piece. Reality becomes the frame.
Marseille’s mayor, Benoît Payan, was quick to react online. “Marseille x Banksy,” he wrote, adding a flame emoji. By midday, the hashtag #BanksyMarseille was trending across France, and beyond.
Though often political, Banksy’s art is just as often personal, exploring themes of loss, longing and identity. In recent years, his works have appeared on war-ravaged buildings in Ukraine, in support of migrants crossing the Mediterranean and on walls condemning capitalism, Brexit, and police brutality.
The artist, who has never confirmed his full identity, began his career spray-painting buildings in Bristol, England, and has become one of the world’s best-known artists. His mischievous and often satirical images include two male police officers kissing, armed riot police with yellow smiley faces and a chimpanzee with a sign bearing the words, “Laugh now, but one day I’ll be in charge.”
His work has sold for millions of dollars at auction, and past murals on outdoor sites have often been stolen or removed by building owners soon after going up. In December 2023, after Banksy stenciled military drones on a stop sign in south London, a man was photographed taking down the sign with bolt cutters. Police later arrested two men on suspicion of theft and criminal damage.
In March 2024, an environmentally themed work on a wall beside a tree in north London was splashed with paint, covered with plastic sheeting and fenced off within days of being created.
Despite the fame — or infamy — at least in Marseille, not everyone walking past noticed it. Some didn’t even know who Banksy was, according to the local press.
On Instagram observers say this Marseille piece feels quieter. More interior.
And yet, it is no less global. The work arrives just ahead of a major Banksy retrospective opening June 14 at the Museum of Art in nearby Toulon featuring 80 works, including rare originals. Another exhibit opens Saturday in Montpellier.
But the Marseille mural wasn’t meant for a museum. It lives in the street, exposed to weather, footsteps and time. As of Friday evening, no barriers had been erected. No glass shield installed. Just a shadow, a beam and a message that’s already circling the world.
Adamson reported from Paris. Lawless reported from London
A woman walks past an artwork by street artist Banksy, Friday, May 30, 2025 in Marseille, southern France. (AP Photo/Bishr Eltoni)
A man makes a selfie by an artwork by street artist Banksy, Friday, May 30, 2025 in Marseille, southern France. (AP Photo/Bishr Eltoni)
A man rides his scooter by an artwork by street artist Banksy, Friday, May 30, 2025 in Marseille, southern France. (AP Photo/Bishr Eltoni)
A man poses by an artwork by street artist Banksy, Friday, May 30, 2025 in Marseille, southern France. (AP Photo/Bishr Eltoni)
A man poses by an artwork by street artist Banksy, Friday, May 30, 2025 in Marseille, southern France. (AP Photo/Bishr Eltoni)
A man poses by an artwork by street artist Banksy, Friday, May 30, 2025 in Marseille, southern France. (AP Photo/Bishr Eltoni)
NEW YORK (AP) — Chris Kreider had never been in the visiting locker room at Madison Square Garden before, and he needed someone to show him how to get on the ice for the Anaheim Ducks' morning skate.
It was an unfamiliar feeling for the NHL forward who spent 13 seasons with the New York Rangers, though he's not experiencing this alone. Kreider gets to do this alongside former Rangers captain Jacob Trouba, as they played their first game back at their old home arena Monday night since getting sent across the country in separate trades.
Kreider waved to the crowd and received a rousing standing ovation following a lengthy video tribute to one of the organization's longest-tenured players. Trouba did the same a few minutes later as fans cheered at the end of a slightly shorter video.
Trouba went to Anaheim just over a year ago, following pressure from the front office to waive his no-trade clause, and spent the summer processing the change. Kreider was dealt in June after similar pressure, so his runway has been much shorter with the whirlwind move and getting ready to play hockey for a new team.
“I don’t think it completely settled in over the offseason," Kreider said. "It didn’t feel real until I got on the plane to go to California and then I was kind of all about getting my bearings there, kind of endear myself to a new group and get to know everyone, get to know the whole setup. I haven’t really had time.”
Kreider spent a lot of time in New York since making his debut in the 2012 playoffs. His 883 regular-season games played over those 13 years rank sixth in franchise history, he is tied for the most power-play goals with 116 and is among the leaders in other statistical categories.
Trouba spent five-plus seasons with the Original Six club, two and change with the “C” on his chest as its leader. His wife pursuing a medical career led him to request a trade there from Winnipeg in 2019, the couple had a son while living in New York and returning to his old neighborhood Sunday night made the 31-year-old emotional.
“There’s so much I learned through my time here about myself, about hockey, about starting a family,” Trouba said. "Just the growth of, I guess, the group and the team while I was here, and growth of myself is something that I look back on most.”
Their exits, which followed respected forward Barclay Goodrow getting put on waivers in the summer of 2024 and landing in San Jose, were unceremonious. General manager Chris Drury sent a memo to the rest of the league's teams spelling out that Trouba and Kreider were available, and each player ended up with the Ducks as the Rangers sought to change a mix that had come up short of winning the Stanley Cup.
Trouba conceded the process of being unwanted and then shipped away from a place he wanted to remain was difficult.
“There’s people that make decisions above you, and at the end of the day you’re a hockey player and this is the job I signed up for,” the big-hitting defenseman said. “I think it’s unfortunate, I guess I’ll say. I didn’t enjoy it in the moment, but it’s just a small piece of what was a very, very memorable and impactful 5 1/2 years for me.”
Kreider was cheered the moment he stepped on the ice for warmups. And while his No. 20 might have hung from the rafters at the Garden one day had he played his whole career there, prefers not to look back in anger.
“You try not to live in the past,” Kreider said. “It’s arrogant to think that you know what something is in that given moment. You don’t necessarily know if it’s going to be a good thing or a bad thing, so just take everything in stride.”
Kreider and Trouba are not the only ex-Rangers players now with Anaheim. They have former teammates Ryan Strome and Frank Vatrano to lean on, as well, and coach Joel Quenneville put all four in the starting lineup.
“It’s made the transition super easy — I mean easier — having Jacob there, having Frank, Stromer," Kreider said. "Having that familiarity certainly helps. The entire group’s been great.”
Quenneville, who had his own emotional return to Chicago in October, when he went back for the first time since being banned from the NHL for his role in a 2010 sexual assault scandal involving his Blackhawks, does not want to pretend to know how Kreider and Trouba should feel about theirs.
He does, however, know the experienced players have had a big impact on the Ducks quickly growing into a contender. They are in a playoff spot nearing the midway point of the season and are on track to end a seven-year drought.
“(Kreider) instantly got our power play rolling and our team rolling right off the bat,” Quenneville said. “And Troubs has gotten off to a great start to the season playing bigger minutes than we envisioned, and all of a sudden offensively he’s been productive in a lot of ways that we didn’t see that coming, either.”
AP NHL: https://www.apnews.com/hub/NHL
Anaheim Ducks left wing Chris Kreider (20) skates during warmups before an NHL hockey game against the New York Rangers, Monday, Dec 15, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Noah K. Murray)
Anaheim Ducks defenseman Jacob Trouba (65) skates during warmups before an NHL hockey game against the New York Rangers, Monday, Dec 15, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Noah K. Murray)
Anaheim Ducks left wing Chris Kreider (20) skates during warmups before an NHL hockey game against the New York Rangers, Monday, Dec 15, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Noah K. Murray)
Anaheim Ducks defenseman Jacob Trouba skates during warmups before an NHL hockey game against the New York Rangers, Monday, Dec 15, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Noah K. Murray)
New York Rangers fans react to Anaheim Ducks' Chris Kreider skating during warmups before an NHL hockey game against the New York Rangers, Monday, Dec 15, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Noah K. Murray)
