Bala inject the energy of ‘jarochos’ into their musical identity for La Bulla’s recreation space

Located in one of the oldest housing areas of the Port of Veracruz is an outdoor recreation space, covering ​​1.5 hectares of land. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the urban renewal project was undertaken to create a colourful and accessible community area, with the goal of improving the physical, mental and emotional health of its inhabitants. Architecture office Taller Multidisciplinar invited Bala, a design studio based in Mexico City, to create an identity for the space inspired by the daily life of the ‘jarochos.’ This resulted in ‘La Bulla,’ literally translated as ‘noise’ (bustle, fuss, racket) – a space full of colour where everyone is welcome.

“Jarocho is the demonym of the people who are born and live in the port of Veracruz, in the Gulf of Mexico,” Creative Director Rodrigo De La Reguera tells us, explaining the theme underpinning the project. “And something that distinguishes them is their characteristic rhythm to speak, a high verbal tone and their lightness in the use of ‘bad words’ – they are cheerful and love music, where many styles are associated such as Danzón, Son Jarocho, Salsa and Reggaeton.” 

Embodying the ‘Jarachos’ character is a blend of sharp geometric patterns with groovy, undulating waves. Aiming to capture the people; the music; the dance; the laughter and the street game, patterns were created according to the waves produced by these sounds. The relationship between diversity and community was also important to the project, which is represented through the contrasting use of shapes. Unifying these elements is La Bulla’s colour palette of sunny pinks and yellows, alongside cool and breezy blues.

The graphic identity contributes a very ‘human’ sense to the space; from the walls and floors to the decorating furniture housing a portable library. This is extended to the choice of type. “We used Headline One HPLHS because it is a typeface similar to those of a hand-painted sign,” De La Reguera notes, “intentionally chosen as that would be one of the main execution resources for the park,” he concludes.

Bala