Vitoria-Gasteiz has taken a new step towards gender equality by choosing the “Juncal Ballestín” square as the first public space in the city to be renamed in honor of a woman. The square, located in front of the Artium Museum, has been renamed in honor of the Vitorian artist Juncal Ballestín, recognized for her great contribution to the world of the arts and whose legacy is preserved in this artistic center.
This is the first step in a series of initiatives to recover and make visible the role of women in the construction of the city, which has been historically silenced. The Marquise of Montehermoso and the Fournier Cards are the next women to have recognized spaces in the city.
The artist Juncal Ballestín, known for her studio in Otazu, created innumerable works of art that gave her great recognition in the art world and allowed her to exhibit in national and international galleries. In addition, a large part of her heritage was donated by the artist to the NGO Anesvad. The renaming of the square is a tribute to her legacy and her contribution to the culture of the city.
Artists, workers, patrons, pioneering women in different fields at specific moments in the city’s history thus recover their space on the Vitoria-Gasteiz street, until now mostly reserved for the symbolic presence of men. Mayor Gorka Urtaran, Councilor for Equality Miren Fernández de Landa and historians Isabel Mellén and Virginia López de Maturana presented the proposal for the first spaces in the city and the names of the women they will remember.
Juncal Ballestín: one of the most recognized artists
Juncal Ballestín, María Pilar de Acedo y Sarriá, Marchioness of Montehermoso, the Fournier playing cards, María Sarmiento, Blanca de Silos, María Concepción López de Arroyabe, Basilisa Tarrios, Teresa Sánchez de Bilbao and Daría Imbert are the first women to give their name to spaces, squares and streets of the city, in a process that will continue to be open to the gradual incorporation of women’s names.
The Plaza de Artium, the one in front of El Corte Inglés, the gardens of the Conservatory of Music, the landscaped space in front of the Hebillas market, the assembly hall of the municipal office building in San Martín, Plaza del Carmen and the parks de Aranbizkarra, Arana and Lakua are the first urban spaces of this project to reduce the gender gap.
Playing Cards and Marquise of Montehermoso
Las Naiperas, a group of women recently vindicated through books and exhibitions, refers to the workers of the Heraclio Fournier Playing Cards factory who, with their work, raised their families and carried the name of the city throughout the world. world through the decks. As representatives of working women, the garden area in front of the Hebillas market is the ideal place to bear the name of this group due to its proximity to one of the old Fournier factories that was located not far from this enclave.
Vitoria-Gasteiz owes a historical debt to María Pilar de Acedo y Sarria, Marquesa de Montehermoso, since she is one of the most important historical figures of our city. In the 19th century, she broke the mold for the women of her time, reaching great levels of power at a difficult time for women due to the pressures of the patriarchy, she was a great defender of the arts, a poet, a musician, a painter… and she also had a decisive influence in the course of events during the War of Independence. Especially because of her facet related to music and the arts, we consider that an ideal location for her is the Conservatory Gardens.
The City Council began this legislature, by commitment of the municipal government and by mandate of the plenary session, a process to reduce the gender gap in the city street. To gather proposals, a working group was created and, in addition, the historians Isabel Mellén and Virginia López de Maturana were contacted, among other queries and documentation work.