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“Recuperem La Punta, aturem la ZAL/ Recover La Punta, stop the ZAL” is a protest project in La Punta, a neighbourhood located in the south of Valencia city, known for its historic and traditional orchards. Over the years La Punta’s natural and social environment has been severally damaged by the unstoppable growth of the Port of València. Today it’s under threat again with the proposed expansion of the Port, despite La Huerta being recognized as a “non-developable land of special protection”. (La Huerta is a vast and fertile land that surrounds the city and one of only six peri-urban orchards left in Europe).
The Port of València and the City Council’s project “Zone of Logistic Activities” (ZAL) implied that La Huerta’s protection was withdrawn, and resulted in hundreds of families being expelled from the area, and the orchards and houses were demolished to yield an enormous plot to the Port. This plot is still abandoned after 14 years! The resistance of the neighbours did not stop the destruction of La Huerta, but to paralyse the ZAL due to three judgments of the Superior Court of Justice annulling the project. Recently, however, the procedures have been put in place to reactivate the ZAL Plan.
The project “Recuperem La Punta, aturem la ZAL/ Recover the tip, stop the ZAL” collaborated with Escif and brought a great line up of street artists to raise awareness of the importance of protecting La Huerta from further destruction. Invited artists include Hyuro, Blu, Borondo, Aryz, Luzinterruptus, Liqen, Sam3, Anaïs Florin, Daniel Muñoz SAN and Elias Taño to create murals and installations in various places of La Punta to claim that the field of more than 700,000 square metres return to be the vegetable garden that it was for centuries.
Escif painted two murals to support the campaign. His first mural shows hands holding onto the soil with a home ontop, his second mural is of a lettuce with the words Hay Lechugas/There are lettuces! supporting the 700,000 square metres of land to return to be the vegetable garden that it once was.
Hyuro paints a huge mural and depicts a male throwing tomatoes, referencing the vegetable garden also in her mural.
“The action of throwing tomatoes universally means rejection, this wall speaks about rejection to all these unbridled urban projects, predators, driven by their own interests without taking into account the life and rights of the people.” Hyuro
Aryz painted views of the local church.
“The neighbours of La Punta have been fighting against the extension of the port for many years now. Because of a dreadful urban plan, there is a lot of pressure for La Punta to be segmented. Some parts have a very difficult access due to all the physical barriers that have been constructed. The church of La Punta is a clear example. It is very difficult to access for many of the inhabitants of the area. Once I arrived there, I decided to paint some views of the church in order to bring it back to the area from which it is hard to access from.” Aryz
Blu painted a pyramid of colourful storage containers, with reference to the Port and containers used for transportation. Together the neighbourhood is strong and will block the ZAL.
Borondo painted a hand holding onto a ball, entitled ‘Asylum’, also skulls and bones on one of the larger bails of hay in his installation, and the face of ‘Goliath‘ on the other. This was also burnt on Fallas festival on Valencia’s famous crema night. Also
Luzinterruptus collected 1.000 recycled packaging collected by the children of Arca de Noé, the neighbours of the area and the ecopark of Valencia for her installation. Luzinterruptus shaped the transparent packaging, filled with green, into a garden theme.
Sam3 mural sees a man in the Port fishing for the beautiful moon, suggesting the ZAL should leave nature alone.
“In Valencia they have a treasure they want to bury. Save La Punta (Huerta behind the port) and stop the ZAL (Logistics Expansion Zone).” Sam3
Anaïs Florin and her banners were used to protest through the streets of La Punta and then also burnt for Fallas.
Daniel Muñoz SAN painted a plush living room scene onto a house entitled ‘The wasteland”.
“Mural made in the Valencian neighbourhood of La Punta, their neighbourhoods have been fighting since 1994 against one of the greatest urban and social nonsense lived in the city. After the destruction of their homes and orchards in 2002, they continue fighting to bring to light the political mezzanine that altered their lives forever.” Daniel Muñoz SAN
Elias Taño painted the protest scene and sees the neighbourhood people fighting off the ZAL, who are armed with their diggers .
In addition to the work of artists, during the weekend 10-11th march 2018 a series of activities such as guided tours, lectures, and walks were all part of the recovery campaign of the neighbourhood of La Punta in València, Spain.
The project has received the 1st Comic and Social Development Prize, awarded by the Divina Pastora Foundation, and we can see why, the neighbourhood has turned to street art to gain the governments attentions and support a ZAL NO!!