The sculpture "L'homme libre", also known as "L'AMAZIGH", can be seen at the side of a small country road in the village of Laprade. Symbolising the human struggle for freedom, it was made from the remains of the Gustave Eiffel bridge. The sculptor RACHID KHIMOUNE used the steel beams picked up during the demolition of the 'Gustave Eiffel' bridge which used to cross the 'Astier', a small Dronne river tributary. This bridge is now replaced by a concrete bridge. In gratitude to the town of Laprade for offering him the 'wastes' of this bridge, the artist donated this sculpture to Laprade. AMAZIGH means 'free man' in Berber language. This ancestral symbol is found in several civilizations, depicting the Man, arms raised and legs apart. From the material and its reconstruction emerges a force and an energy expressing the eternal struggle of the human for the conquest of their freedom. To fulfill the urban dimension of his work, Rachid Khimoune has made castings on the concrete base which represents different sewer plates from several cities of the world.
