A research group from Université de Genève initiated this project to commemorate the life of Alexei Jaccard. As well as and the many cases of forced disappearance related to the recent history of political events in Latin America. The commemoration took the form of informative mural on the entrance walls of the auditorium of Unimail, named after Alexei Jaccard.   

The Mural Graphic Intervention

Since this summer, the space has been transformed into a place for information and interdisciplinary reflection. On the mural, a permanent graphic intervention unveils the history of Alexei Jaccard (whose body has still not been found). By providing historical background to Operation Condor, defining the disappearance as a crime against humanity, and explaining its social impact. Another wall is devoted to temporary exhibitions.   

We designed a piece that covers the walls between the two entrances to the auditorium. Using a vivid and strong red, to not go unnoticed, and providing the context and facts of the disappearance of Jaccard. With it, an extended timeline, from 1952, the birth of Jaccard until 2022, celebrating the inauguration of the mural. It relates to the personal story of A. Jaccard with the chronology of political events and factors. It helps understand that A. Jaccard was only one case among many, and the dates that marked his life, were also the dates that determined the future of many countries. 

The Context

In May 1977, a Swiss-Chilean student disappeared in Argentina. Alexei Jaccard was, officially, on his way to see his sick mother. She had moved to Buenos Aires with the rest of the family following the coup d’état led by Augusto Pinochet in 1973. In truth, the young man had crossed the Atlantic to join members of the Chilean Communist Party in exile in Argentina.   

Photos : Samy Bouart Cart and Laurent Chiu