Javier Sáez is from Lodosa and since 2020 has been part of the O Arquitectura studio, where he works together with Ignacio Ruiz de Erenchun and Patxi Burillo, alumni the School. The name of the studio evokes the geometry of the circle and its resonance with the environment and also the cromlechs, circular stone groupings originating in the north of Navarre. Cromlechs are "voids in the earth that represent a void in the sky," explains Javier Sáez. 

 In this interview he explains his project and the creation process:

How was the ideation process of 'Pareten Mintzoa'?

The main axes of the project are the history of Pamplona and the history of pelota and an urban context whose values must be preserved. The position of the plot represents the junction between the widening and the layout of the Labrit slope and the place de Toros, an unresolved plot after the demolition of the fire station in 2010.

We spent most of the time observing the conditions and characteristics that gave a special value to that place. "A green platform overlooking the landscape and where the scale of Pamplona descends". All these factors seemed to us a very good opportunity to be able to think and investigate about the ball, the object of the competition, as the area of the unsolved plot itself.

What is the relationship between the building and the sport?

There is a very intrinsic relationship between the history of the city and the history of pelota. A lecture in Lesaca on the history of the sport illuminated many of the decisions we later made.

Pelota is a game that originated in Greece and Rome. It arrived in Navarre through the jeu de paume in France. We discovered that the first players were shepherds in open fields where they marked lines called 'pilotasoros'.

The game evolved into 'laxoa', another game that incorporated the wall element for the first time, and the sport began to be played in towns and cities, until the wall became an indispensable element.

The importance of the walls in the ball was what led us to title the project 'Pareten Mintzoa', which in Basque means 'the talk of the walls'. The building seeks the conversation between different types of walls and walls throughout history. 

The images of the 1920 file reveal that the walls of Pamplona were buried under the plot and we wanted to relate the pediment to it; to bring to light its relationship with the fort of San Bartolomé and the Baluarte del Labrit.

The fronton is in dialogue with Labrit and Jito Alai...

The Labrit fronton is one of the main professional frontons at national level and the Jito Alai fronton is a semi-detached fronton that takes advantage of the wall as a wall for the game. The frontons have always generated meeting and socializing places within the towns, exhibition and meeting places. We proposed a third fronton, in this case free, with two walls and the green field that surrounds it resembles the 'pilotasoro'.

The project draws an L-shape, why?

The L-shaped configuration creates an outdoor route through the history of the frontons because there is almost a fronton of each subject (a pilotasoro, a terraced fronton and a cathedral fronton for professional play).

What role do the materials play in the project?

The building is designed in concrete as a way of thinking about modern stone. We needed to respond to the forts with a material that was hard and durable, that would store, like the stone of the walls, the patina of time. In this way, it becomes one more fort and at the same time one more pediment.

How is the space distributed?

The leave floor consists of the entrance hall, the administration, a small store and the cafeteria. These last two uses were incorporated after the citizen enquiry made during the first phase of the competition. On the upper floor we find the offices of the pelota federations and a conference room for meetings that overlooks the Labrit.

The basement is divided into two areas. On the one hand, the exhibition area has classrooms for training and exhibition of plastic, auditory and visual arts materials. On the other hand, the subway floor includes the open file area where researchers can work and exhibit their material.

As we needed natural light in the subway level, we generated a skylight above that maintains the original lines of the fronton playing field. In addition, the excavation will reveal the exact location of the walls, allowing us to respond flexibly and play with light through the skylights.