The Rochapea neighbourhood in Pamplona is preparing to bring to life three new collaborative murals as part of the oPEN Lab project, an initiative that promotes creativity, citizen participation, and social innovation. This project aims to integrate the history, identity, and future of the neighbourhood through collective art.
During the months of February and March, a series of workshops have taken place, where local residents, students, and teaching staff from the neighbourhood’s schools have worked together to generate ideas and design the murals. These workshops, organised by the project’s core group alongside the schools Cardenal Ilundain, La Compasión Escolapios, Patxi Larrainzar, and CP Rochapea, have served as spaces for meeting and collaboration.
Involvement of educational institutions and the start of the creative process
The creative process began in November 2024, when the project’s core group met to define the walls and themes for the three new murals that will adorn the neighbourhood’s schools. This collaboration is part of an initiative that took its first steps in early 2024 with the creation of a mural on the court wall at La Compasión Escolapios School.
After an initial sketch was created, local residents and students actively participated in workshops held between February and April to define the final design of the mural. In May 2024, the painting process for this mural began, which connects the past, present, and future of the neighbourhood through a timeline represented by the Arga River. The mural was unveiled in June of the same year.
A mural reflecting the past, present, and future of Rochapea
This first mural, created at La Compasión Escolapios School, is structured in three key stages. Firstly, the past, depicted with more muted tones, highlights women as essential workers in the neighbourhood, representing laundresses and workers from the orchards. The central part of the mural, corresponding to the present, reflects the social changes of the 1980s, emphasising gender equality and urban transformation. Finally, the future is represented with a neighbourhood that is more sustainable, inclusive, and equitable.
Idea and design workshops: three new murals in the neighbourhood
On 25th February, an idea workshop was held at the Environmental Education Museum, where the proposals that will shape the narrative of the three new murals of Rochapea were gathered and agreed upon. Following the success of this workshop, the creation process for the mural at CP Rochapea began on 26th March, with the first design workshop, which proved to be a creative and enriching experience.
In May, the painting of the first mural will begin on one of the walls of CP Rochapea. During the same month, a new design workshop is scheduled for the mural at Cardenal Ilundain School. More information about the progress will be published soon.
